Minnesota should end cash bail, change pretrial detention practices, report says

A new report recommends that Minnesota should eliminate cash bail and instead create a system that is not based on people’s access to wealth.

The state’s pretrial system relies heavily on monetary bail and disproportionately affects people of color and low-income residents, says the study, which was released this month.

The report was authored by the Minnesota Justice Research Center, a nonpartisan criminal justice reform nonprofit. The Legislature asked the center to conduct the report in 2023 and provide recommendations to reform the state’s pretrial system.

The study, which spanned 18 months, found that 56% of people in Minnesota jails are being held there pretrial, meaning their case has not yet resulted in a conviction, dismissal or plea. Black and Indigenous people are overrepresented in jail populations, and greater Minnesota has higher rates of pretrial detention.

“That’s troubling, especially because so much of the focus of … a policy shift in Minnesota focuses on the Twin Cities metro area,” said Anna Hall, the study’s project lead and a criminal defense attorney. “But what we found was that racial disparities were actually highest in greater Minnesota counties for Indigenous and Black folks.”

The Minnesota Constitution guarantees that everyone has a right to bail, an amount they can pay for pretrial release if they are not released on their own recognizance. In practice, that favors those able to pay the bail or a bail bond company, the study says.

“Who gets free pretrial and who stays detained often depends on their access to money,” the report stated.

As part of the study, the research center interviewed people who work in the justice system, such as sheriffs, judges and prosecutors, as well as incarcerated people and community members. They also held listening sessions throughout Minnesota, and analyzed data from the Minnesota Department of Corrections.

The report’s findings include:

Research cited by the report found that people who are detained pretrial can face worse outcomes. For example, being detained pretrial can disrupt ties with their community and employment, increasing the risk that a person will commit a crime again.

Researchers also heard from community members that some had taken plea deals to end their detention earlier instead of going to trial.

“The current pretrial system does little to enhance public safety or advance equity but causes injustice and harm in ways that radiate beyond the individual,” the report says.

The report says Minnesota should reform its pretrial system to one that eliminates cash bail and prioritizes equity, liberty and community safety.

Under the recommended system, the state Constitution would be changed, and the monetary-based detention system would be replaced with “a more deliberate detention process” that is not based on people’s access to money, the report says.

Hall said judges would consider more information when deciding whether someone should be detained. Certain offenses would make someone eligible for detention, but they wouldn’t be detained automatically. A prosecutor could make a motion for the person to be detained.

For those who are not detained, pretrial support services would be available to help them navigate court appearances and connect them with community programs and support. Currently, about 18 of the 87 counties in Minnesota have pretrial service programs, the report says.

Other recommendations include expanding cite-and-release policies, meaning people accused of low-level crimes would not be booked into jail but would instead be issued a summons to appear in court.

Another recommendation is that all people should have access to legal representation at their first court appearance.

In Minnesota, a judge tells a defendant at their first appearance that they have a right to an attorney and appoints a public defender if the person can’t afford an attorney. But it is not required statewide that the attorney be at the first appearance.

The report also recommends that more services be provided for victims and survivors of crimes, especially in domestic violence cases.

Some counties have made reforms to their pretrial system, but while counties can make policies on when they request cash bail, they can’t eliminate the practice entirely. A statewide change would bring more sweeping change and give counties access to more funding to make reforms.

Hall said Illinois and New Jersey no longer use cash bail.

“We have the opportunity to transform our system into one that is more aligned with the evidence and more aligned with our values as Minnesotans,” Hall said.

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This story comes to you from Sahan Journal, a nonprofit newsroom dedicated to covering Minnesota’s immigrants and communities of color. Sign up for a free newsletter to receive Sahan’s stories in your inbox.