Is The Bail Reform Responsible For The Rise In Gun Violence?

New London CT

15 September, 2021

8:18 AM

Description

Gun violence has been around for some years. However, the recent spike in the number of gun violence cases has been an issue of concern for both the police and citizens. Many people have attributed the rise in gun crimes to the recent bail reform – a supposition that is quite untrue. Truly, police leaders are targeting bail reforms as the leading cause of the increasing number of homicides but data from a Chicago study states otherwise. According to that data, only a small percentage of criminal defendants released on Gun Crimes Bail Bonds end up committing violent crimes. In a separate study conducted in 2020 by Loyola University, it was found that 97% of criminal defendants who made bail in Cook County were not re-arrested or charged with fresh violent offenses. The court data obtained between the years 2017 and 2019 clearly dissociates Bail Reform from the increasing rate of gun violence. Data released in July of 2016 by the Cook County Sheriff’s office revealed that criminal defendants who are being electronically monitored stood at 2,276 but the number has gradually risen to 3,321 in July of 2020. This marks a positive correlation between the increased number of defendants released pretrial just after 2017. The data showed a steady rise in the overall number of people charged for gun violence. In essence, Connecticut Bail Bonds Group, a top bail bondsman notes that bail reform aims to reduce, or at best, eliminate cash bail for defendants who have been charged with misdemeanors or nonviolent offenses. The reform, according to the bail bondsman, is targeted at making the justice system equitable by holding the rich and poor to the same legal standards. In the past, the rich could easily buy their pre-trial freedom by meeting their bail condition while leaving the poor behind the bars. The reform aims to eliminate this and set a golden standard for all defendants. With the increasing rate of homicides across many American cities, especially in 2020, according to a report published by the Council on Criminal Justice, getting to the root of the problem has become essential. A homicide study that cut across 22 cities in the first six months of 2021 showed a significant 16% increase compared to the previous year (2020), and a 42% increase compared to the year before (2019) – within the same period. In a preliminary report by the FBI, homicide rates increased by 25% between 2019 and 2020 making it the largest difference since the data recorded in 1960. Instead of attributing the rise of gun violence to bail reform, experts have instead pointed to a string of factors, including economic collapse and pandemic-induced social anxiety. Other factors like increasing rates of protests against the police department may also be a major cause. A senior fellow at the Council on Criminal Justice, Thomas Abt, noted that although violent crimes are increasing, the rate of increase is low compared to the previous years. The evidence is glaring and points in the opposite direction of the claims about bail reforms. Connecticut Bail Bonds Group 300 State St Suite 412 New London, CT 06320 (860) 339-6967 https://www.connecticut-bailbonds.com/new-london-ct-bail-bonds/