New Study Says “Zero Bail” will Save the World
If you were to stand and bang your head against a wall over and over again, guess what? It would hurt. Eventually you would stop, right? Because banging your head against a wall doesn’t make any sense. In fact, most people wouldn’t bang their head against the wall in the first place because they know it would hurt.
I am pretty sure you can classify this one under common sense. But in Los Angeles County, common sense seems to be a rare thing. And a recent study released this week proves it. https://smdp.com/news/crime/court-study-claims-zero-bail-requirements-improve-public-safety/
Over the past decade, a concept called “zero bail” has been experimented with throughout the state of California. It is a simple concept that says that if you are accused of certain crimes, we will release you from jail for FREE with very little accountability until your trial. It is a concept that relies on the honesty, kindness and good nature of people. You know a concept that most of us innately have that drives us to be good people. People that open doors for others. People that help others in need. People that follow laws and act responsibly. But the problem with this assumption is that not all people are honest, kind and good natured. Some people don’t open doors for others. Some people don’t help others in need and some people don’t follow the law and act responsibly. That is where the problem with “zero bail” exists. It inappropriately assumes someone is good, honest and responsible, when they have proven time and time again to not be.
During Covid, our elected officials experimented with “zero bail.” They claimed it was inhumane and evil to keep accused criminals in jail, and we needed to release them without bail. What ensued was a crime wave like we have never seen before. Why? Because when you assume that criminals are law abiding, honest, kind people, you will lose… and that is what happened to the citizens of Los Angeles. They lost. And don’t think this is the first study ever done on zero bail. These studies are a self-fulfilling prophecy… confirmation bias at its worse. There have been so many. And guess what? They all show that releasing people for free with no bail and no accountability decreases public safety.
Yolo County District Attorney, Jeff Reisig, did a study on zero bail during and after its implementation and found that zero bail didn’t make us safer, but rather it increased crime substantially. It increased crime across EVERY category. Here are just a few of the key findings (https://yoloda.org/zero-bail-case-study-zero-bail-policies-increased-crime-in-every-category/).
- Individuals released on Zero Bail were subsequently rearrested for a total of 163% more crimes than individuals released on bail.
- Arrested individuals released on Zero Bail reoffended at an average rate that was 70% higher than arrestees who posted bail.
- The average recidivism rate for those released on Zero Bail was 78% over 18 months, while the average recidivism rate for those released on bail was only 46%.
- Individuals released on Zero Bail committed new felonies 90% more often than those who posted bail.
- Individuals released on Zero Bail committed new misdemeanors 123% more often than those who posted bail.
- Individuals released on Zero Bail were rearrested for two or more new crimes 148% more often than those released on bail.
- Individuals released on Zero Bail committed new violent offenses 200% more often than those who posted bail.
Now do those findings sound like zero bail increased public safety? I don’t think so. And guess what? Jeff Reisig did this study again a couple years later to confirm his results and they were just as bad. It only makes sense, right? Zero bail is a dangerous and irresponsible way to release accused criminals into our communities. It has been shown to create an environment of crime and lawlessness wherever it has been implemented.
So, explain then, how in the world does Los Angeles County’s research show that zero bail is a magic bullet that miraculously turns criminals into law abiding citizens? How can LA County’s research defy common sense and go against the countless other studies that have been done on the topic that all show zero bail doesn’t work? That is a great question…and one that needs to be asked. What is driving the implementation of bad public policy? Again, they have to come up with studies that support the story line. Especially right after LA County voters just got tough on crime and passed Proposition 36 and replaced George Gascon with Nathan Hochman.
All we can say is that it looks like the same old activists are still trying to do the same old things. And they are trying to do them against the will of the LA County voter. If there is one thing that I have learned in all these years in the bail profession, it is that the bail reform activists are capable of anything. It isn’t shocking that they have generated and are now perpetuating a new research study that supports their wild anti-secured bail ideology. It is part of the playbook. But I think the people are tired of it. They are tired of the lies and the resulting crime. They are speaking loud and clear during elections that they want a strong bail system because they know that equates to safe and better public safety. The people voted back in 2020 against Proposition 25 and risk assessments so they could keep their bail system. They voted for proposition 36 in 2024 to put an end to runaway crime. And they voted George Gascon out in 2024 because they were tired of feeling unsafe in their own homes.
So, no matter what type of tall tales and misinformation that these people claim in their research, I am confident that the citizens of LA County will see through the lies. Because at the end of the day, all the law abiding, kind, responsible people really want the same thing, common sense policies that keep their families and communities safe.