Tim Murray Talks Bail & Pretrial Services on the Justice Podcast

By Tony Mastria

JPI is excited to announce the release of the second episode of the Justice Podcast, now available on iTunes and Podbean.  Listen, download, and subscribe to stay informed on the latest and best news in justice reform.

In honor of Incarceration Generation's first anniversary, we will be interviewing the authors who made this compilation possible, including researchers, advocates, community members, and other individuals in the justice field.

In the second installment of our Incarceration Generation series, JPI had the pleasure of speaking with Tim Murray, Director Emeritus of the Pretrial Justice Institute, a nonprofit organization based in Washington, DC, whose mission is "to advance safe, fair, and effective juvenile and adult pretrial justice practices and policies."  During our conversation, Murray touched on the bail system, the private bonding industry, and pretrial services and how these components of our justice system affect detainees, their families, and the broader public.



"We have a nation of jails and prisons full of people who, from the very start of their case, are disadvantaged and treated differently, not because they are dangerous... but rather because of their inability to raise cash," he writes in Incarceration Generation. "Pretrial release decisions must be based upon the principles of fairness, effectiveness and community safety without concern for the dollars the accused can raise or for an industry that depends upon crime for its very existence."

Murray raises these concerns in his discussion with JPI, highlighting the detriments of cash-based pretrial detention; the burdensome impact on disadvantaged clients and communities; the hefty financial and public safety costs borne by the public; the historical origins of the bail system and private bonding industry; the myths and fallacies associated with this facet of our justice system; and the immense potential for positive reforms, including the integration of risk assessment and greater use of pretrial services.

After tuning in, why not read Murray's chapter from Incarceration Generation for yourself? For a limited time, you can read it for free on Scribd.  If you'd like to own a copy of Incarceration Generation, make your contribution to JPI here.

Tony is JPI's Digital Media Associate.