Understanding the Pretrial Fairness Act
Erica Bentley, C-IAYT, CADCc
PYC Director of Activism & Engagement
On Sunday, January 1, 2023, the Pretrial Fairness Act (PFA) was set to take effect in Illinois, ending money bail and moving us closer to a system of actual “innocent until proven guilty” by eliminating the pretrial detention of many people accused of crimes. The PFA is part of the much larger SAFE-T (Safety, Accountability, Fairness & Equity-Today) Act, which was signed into law by Gov. JB Pritzker in early 2021. The SAFE-T Act is a massive bill that not only ends cash bail in Illinois, but also supports victims & survivors of crimes and increases oversight of the police.
In what is clearly a last-ditch effort to circumvent proper channels of legislation and delay the inevitable implementation of the PFA, a Kankakee Court has issued a lawsuit stating that the Act is unconstitutional. The Illinois Supreme Court has paused implementation of the law while they review the court’s claim. While this delay is frustrating and unfortunate, organizers and proponents of the Pretrial Fairness Act remain confident that it is temporary, and expect the Supreme Court to produce a favorable ruling by May or June of 2023. The Coalition to End Money Bond has put together a great informative video where you can learn more about what is currently happening with the proceedings and ways to support.
Leading up to the new year, there was a campaign of misinformation and fear-mongering around so-called “Purge Laws” that will flood our streets with violent crime and prohibit police and judges from doing their jobs. In reality, the SAFE-T Act will do a number of things to make our communities safer, and judges can still deny pretrial release for anyone charged with forcible felonies such as treason, murder, sexual assault, robbery, home invasion, aggravated battery and arson.
The Pretrial Fairness Acts strikes a blow to the racist prison industrial complex, in part by eliminating the opportunity for someone to literally buy their way out of jail by eliminating cash bond. In a nutshell, bond or bail is something that is given to the court to hold as collateral for a person’s freedom while they are awaiting trial. This may be actual money, or it may be a deed to property, or it may be some other sort of third-party liability agreement. Theoretically, it is intended to give the accused person incentive to show up for their court dates, because doing so means that item will be returned. Illinois had already moved to an exclusively cash bond system.
Not being able to pay bail often means months or years of incarceration- without ever being convicted of a crime- which has devastating results. People often lose their jobs, housing, and even children, because of mere accusations, and many families have to choose between bailing out a loved one or paying bills or buying groceries. Pretrial detention and money bond effectively criminalize monetary poverty, extract vital resources from our communities, and disproportionately impact Black & Brown families.
In addition to eliminating cash bail, the Pretrial Fairness Act reforms the warrant process by making a distinction between someone accidentally failing to appear to court and intentional flight, and adjusting penalties accordingly. Importantly, the PFA also reforms electronic monitoring by guaranteeing that people on monitors have movement beyond their home and that their time spent on electronic monitoring will count toward any sentence, should they actually eventually be convicted. Under the Act, a judge must reconsider electronic monitoring every 60 days to determine if a person can be released from electronic monitoring.
Once the Pretrial Fairness Act goes into effect, it will be retroactive, meaning that people who are currently incarcerated- people like our PYC students- may be directly impacted by the change in law. It will be up to each individual to consult with their lawyers to determine if they choose to have a new hearing around their pretrial detention.
The Pretrial Fairness Act is by no means perfect, and it alone does not do nearly enough to reform a system that is fundamentally designed to punish and keep people trapped in cycles of oppression and recidivism. However, it, and the SAFE-T Act as a whole, is a move in the right direction for Illinois, and hopefully one of many changes that will eventually bring us to a more equitable way of being in community with one another- one that is aligned with the true values that Yoga teaches us.