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Trump Takes Aim at Cashless Bail Jurisdictions Such as L.A.
By a MetNews Staff Writer
President Donald Trump yesterday signed an executive order threatening to cut federal funding to jurisdictions—such as Los Angeles County—that have adopted so-called “cashless bail” policies under which many criminal defendants are released pending trial without posting any security.
In the order, he directs U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi to submit a list of states and local jurisdictions “that have…substantially eliminated cash bail as a potential condition of pretrial release from custody for crimes that pose a clear threat to public safety and order, including offenses involving violent, sexual, or indecent acts, or burglary, looting, or vandalism.”
The decree adds:
“The head of each executive department and agency…shall identify Federal funds, including grants and contracts, currently provided to cashless bail jurisdictions…that may be suspended or terminated, as appropriate and consistent with applicable law.”
An accompanying “fact sheet” posted on the White House website declares that “[c]ashless bail policies allow dangerous individuals to immediately return to the streets and further endanger law-abiding, hard-working Americans.” The release highlights multiple instances where a released individual allegedly reoffended and says:
“A 2023 study out of Yolo County, California found that its ‘Zero Bail’ policy resulted in 163% more crime and 200% more violent crime compared to those who posted bail.”
Los Angeles County
Los Angeles County moved to a no-cash bail policy in October 2023 for virtually all defendants accused of misdemeanors or nonviolent felonies. Under the system, most individuals arrested for crimes are either cited and released without paying any security or conditionally freed on certain terms, like electronic monitoring or home supervision by probation officers, after judicial review within 24 hours of detention.
Defendants accused of murder, manslaughter, rape, and most types of assault still face cash bail requirements for release, as do those facing misdemeanor charges involving stalking, domestic battery, and violations of protective orders. The county’s move to a largely no-bail system followed the California Supreme Court’s 2021 decision in In re Humphrey in which the court mandated that a defendant’s bond be set based on individual circumstances—such as ties to the community and prior record—and declared that the arrestee’s ability to pay must be taken into account. In the opinion authored by then-Justice Mariano-Florentino Cuéllar (now retired), the court said:
“The common practice of conditioning freedom solely on whether an arrestee can afford bail is unconstitutional. Other conditions of release…can in many cases protect public and victim safety as well as assure the arrestee’s appearance at trial. What we hold is that where a financial condition is nonetheless necessary, the court must consider the arrestee’s ability to pay the stated amount of bail….”
Cooley Comments
Former Los Angeles County District Attorney Steve Cooley commended yesterday’s executive order, saying:
“Various iterations of cashless bail have led inexorably to recidivist violent criminals being OUT when they should be IN and, in some cases, the creation of government bureaucracies that are expensive and not effective. President Trump is on the right track but there is a question as to how much impact his Executive Order will have in the overall criminal justice system.”
Earlier in the day, the president signed an action specifically targeting the District of Columbia, ordering:
“[R]elevant Federal law enforcement agencies and officials who are members of the D.C. Safe and Beautiful Task Force…shall work to ensure that arrestees in the District of Columbia are held in Federal custody to the fullest extent permissible under applicable law, and shall pursue Federal charges and pretrial detention for such arrestees whenever possible, consistent with applicable law, to ensure that criminal defendants who pose a threat to public safety are not released from custody prior to trial.”
The order also directs federal agencies to “press the District of Columbia” to change any policy or practice of prohibiting cash bail by considering, among other options, amending federal “funding decisions.”
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