The Vanguard Court Watch Annual Dinner: “Reforming the Unjust Bail System”
Featuring Keynote Speaker, SF Public Defender Jeff Adachi
Panel Discussion:
Jeff Adachi, SF Public Defender
Phil Telfeyan, co-founder, Equal Justice Under the Law
Mica Doctoroff, Legislative Advocate with the ACLU of California Center for Advocacy and Policy
Gloria Mitchell, President, California Bail Agents Association
Jessica Bartholow, Policy Advocate, Western Center on Law & Poverty
The Issue of Bail Reform is Rising to the Top of Criminal Justice/ Social Justice Issues
Bail reform has become a huge issue with the US DOJ now filing a brief arguing that fixed bail schedules “that allow for the pretrial release of only those who can pay, without accounting for ability to pay and alternative methods of assuring future appearance, do not provide for such individualized determinations, and therefore unlawfully discriminate based on indigence.”
The Contra Costa Times reported last year that roughly 65-70 percent of those in county jail custody are awaiting trial and that number is up to 85 in the Bay Area.
“It’s unfair because people who are released from jail are simply those who have money. You can get out on bail if you’re charged with murder if you have the money,” Jeff Adachi said. “And yet if you’re charged with criminal trespass, and you don’t have $500 to post bail, you’re going to be in jail.”
“The presumption of innocence in this country is meaningless because, for most of our clients who are poor people, they are incarcerated pending their trials,” he said. “It places much more pressure on them for innocent people to plead guilty. It creates a disincentive for cases to be fully investigated and litigated.”
Recent Articles:
July 31: Why Bail Reform Is One of the Most Critical Issues Facing the Criminal Justice System
August 23: DOJ Argues Bail Schedules Unconstitutional, as Studies Reveal How Discriminatory Bail Is
Reforming the Unjust Bail System
November 19, 2016 from 5 to 8 pm
Doors open at 5
Dinner served at 5:30
Program from 6 to 8
Tickets Start at $50, Sponsorships at $100
All proceeds go to support the Vanguard Court Watch Project – Davis Vanguard is a 501c3 non-profit, all donations are tax deductible
- When
- Where
- Davis Senior Center – 646 A Street, Davis, CA 95616 – View Map
