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Smith, Sandra

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    The Current State of Bail Reform in the United States: Results of a Landscape Analysis of Bail Reforms Across All 50 States
    (Harvard Kennedy School, 2021-12) Smith, Sandra; Jorgensen, Isabella
    This report discusses cash bail reforms that have occurred in the United States and provides key considerations for people interested in implementing bail reforms in their jurisdiction. Based on a landscape analysis of bail reforms across all 50 states, we identify the four main actors who take the lead on adopting bail reforms, as well as specific reforms they have implemented. We also consider different processes bail reform actors follow to implement reforms. We then share eight trends in the impacts of bail reforms from 12 jurisdictions where there has been thorough analysis of the reforms. Next, we lay out six criteria that equitable and effective bail reforms should satisfy and provide New Jersey as a case study. We conclude by discussing concerning elements of bail reforms that policy actors should be wary of when designing changes to the cash bail system.
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    Between a Rock and a Hard Place: The Social Costs of Pretrial Electronic Monitoring in San Francisco
    (Harvard Kennedy School, 2022-09) Smith, Sandra; Robson, Cierra
    In the year following Humphrey, a judicial decision mandating that judges consider both defendants’ ability to pay cash bail and non-monetary release options, San Francisco Sheriff’s Office (SFSO) reported a 308% increase in the number of people court-ordered for pretrial electronic monitoring (EM) – from 178 to 725. Although proponents of pretrial EM have described it as an effective alternative to pretrial incarceration – one that ensures public safety and court appearances – critics contend that it is simply an alternative form of incarceration, with many of jail’s attendant harms. With this debate in mind, we explore people’s recent experiences on pretrial EM in San Francisco – the extent and nature of difficulties program participants face while attempting to meet program obligations, the extent to which and how these difficulties put them at risk for noncompliance, and how threats of noncompliance interact with other major issues that system-involved people face to affect program outcomes. Through in-depth, semi-structured interviews with a convenience sample of 66 people court-ordered to participate in pretrial EM between 2018 and 2020, we find that prior struggles, especially with housing insecurity and co-occurring disorders, made it much more difficult to meet program obligations, amplifying risks of noncompliance. Further, conditions of pretrial EM release also created hardships for many, making it even more difficult to find safe, affordable, and stable housing; to protect health and well-being; to secure employment and keep jobs; and to maintain physical, emotional, and psychological connections to loved ones. Indeed, pretrial EM often placed program participants in the untenable position of constantly having to choose between two or more equally awful options, such as program compliance or maintaining employment. These findings have major implications for debates about pretrial EM’s net-widening effects but also the inherent stickiness of the criminal legal system.