Lawsuit Pursues End of Bail for Non-Violent Offenders in Calif.

The class-action lawsuit was filed last month in San Francisco by the nonprofit organization, Equal Justice Under Law

Suspected criminals arrested, but not put behind bars on bail. This could be the reality, at least according to a federal class-action lawsuit recently filed by a nonprofit organization in California.

The organization, Equal Justice Under Law, filed the lawsuit last month in San Francisco proposing an end to money-based bail for non-violent offenders.

If the organization wins the case, it could have broader implications for counties across the state, including San Diego County, where some find the idea of no bail worrisome.

“I can't imagine life without bail,” exclaimed San Diego bail agent, Wendy Zummut, owner of Bail Bond Woman. “It would be catastrophic! We'd have anarchy.”

The lawsuit calls the bail process a "wealth-based detention scheme" that essentially allows rich people to pay out of pocket to get out of jail while the poor either remain jailed or are forced to go to bail agents, financing their freedom over time.

Phil Telfeyan, Executive Director of Equal Justice Under Law, filed the class-action suit.

“If the state has already made policy decision that if you're selling drugs, if you pay enough money you can be free, we don’t think that’s a fair process,” he explained. “It’s discrimination against the poor so that two people who commit the exact same crime have different outcomes based on wealth status."

But not everyone agrees with that stance.

“If I get arrested for DUI and my bail is $2,500 and I’m homeless and you get arrested for drunk driving and you’re a multimillionaire, it’s $2,500,” Marco LiMandri, of the California Bail Agents Association, told NBC 7. “That’s fair. We’re both paying the same amount.”

The suit notes counties have methods besides monetary bail to ensure suspects appear in court while still keeping the public safe, including things like home detention and electronic monitoring.

“If there is domestic violence there can be a restraining order put in place as a pretrial condition," added Telfeyan.

“Misdemeanor domestic violence is a gateway to felony domestic violence as things escalate, as we learned from O.J.," Zumutt countered.

The San Diego Police Department, San Diego County Sheriff’s Department and San Diego County District Attorney’s office did not want to comment on the lawsuit, citing pending litigation. Similar lawsuits have been filed in seven other states.
 

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