Facts vs. Myths

Myth

Fact

Jail population is increasing

Not true based on Bureau of Justice Statistics and Vera Institute data. In fact, jail populations have declined since 2008.

“The jails are filled with “low level, non-violent” offenders who are there because they cannot afford bail

Many studies have proven this is untrue. Looking at almost any county jail population proves it is an untrue statement.

Everyone arrested is forced to pay bail

Not true - millions of people arrested each year are released without any requirement to pay bail.

“Cash bail” is costing taxpayers $14 billion per year in incarceration costs.

This is completely false based on number 5 below. In fact, incarceration costs would be much greater.

The US has a “mass incarceration” problem.

No, the US has a “mass crime” problem. According to BJS data over 20 million crimes per year. Over 5 million violent crime victims per year.

There are 500,000 defendants in jail, pretrial, on any given day.

Likely true, however, the data needs to be examined. Studies by prisonpolicy.org noted one-third of pretrial defendants are violent offenders. Another third are in jail with “No Bond” for various violations, warrants, holds, etc. The last third are booked and released within days. There are 10 million arrests each year. That’s over 200,000 per week. Since 200,000 defendants are booked each week, 200,000 defendants are also released each week or the jail population would be increasing.