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Dumping Debra and Donna: Counties should reduce pretrial incarceration if they can't afford health costs

Over the last decade or so, even as crime has declined, most Texas jails have gotten fuller mostly because of a dramatic expansion in pretrial detention - in particular requiring bail instead of releasing offenders on personal recognizance bonds. Indeed, for reasons I cannot explain, this pattern constitutes a statewide trend even though the decisions behind it are all made by local judges. According to Dr. Tony Fabelo, overall jail populations in Texas increased 18.6% between 2000-2007, while the number of pretrial detainees increased 49.2% over the same period.With this decision, though, comes all the costs resulting from jail overcrowding - particularly health care for inmates.In two ugly cases this year in Henderson County, a judge refused to offer a female defendant a personal bond, then while incarcerated they became sick unto death...continue to full post

Full post as published by Grits for Breakfast on August 04, 2008 (boomark / email).