SB 10: Pretrial Release and Detention Print Notice Referendum 1856 (18-0009), Referendum to Overturn a 2018 Law That Replaced Money Bail System with a System Based on Public Safety Risk, qualified for the November 2020 ballot, after being certified by the Secretary of State on January 16, 2019. Qualification of the referendum has the effect of staying SB 10. At this time, the Judicial Council of California has suspended implementation of the legislation, including adoption of California Rules of Court. If you have specific questions, please contact the council’s Criminal Justice Services office: crimjusticeoffice@jud.ca.gov Overview Senate Bill 10External link icon (Hertzberg, Stats. 2018, ch. 244) authorizes a change to California’s pretrial release system from a money-based system to a risk-based release and detention system. SB 10 assumes that a person will be released on his or her own recognizance or supervised own recognizance with the least restrictive nonmonetary condition or combination of conditions that will reasonably assure public safety and the defendant’s return to court. Contact Info Criminal Justice Services 415-865-8994 crimjusticeoffice@jud.ca.gov What Does SB 10 Do? Creates series of categories of persons and offenses: Different levels of review Misdemeanors - Most are cited and released within 12 hours Greater scrutiny as seriousness of the offense increases Detention is based on risk, not lack of money Eliminates cash bail or bail bonds When there is very strong evidence that no conditions of release can reasonably assure public safety, a defendant can be detained pretrial, regardless of financial resources Important Information on SB 10 SB 10 OverviewPDF file type icon Updated November 8, 2018 Summary of Release and Detention Process Under SB 10PDF file type icon Overview of the Pretrial Process Under SB 10 Detailed Flowchart of the Prearrangement Process under SB 10 with court review. This image shows the roles of the booking agency and Pretrial Assessment Services in evaluating arrestees, and the factors that lead to either releasing an arrestee within 12 hours of arrest on their own recognizance, release with supervision, or detention until arraignment. Flowchart – Prearraignment Process under SB 10 – Detailed PDF file type icon Infographic showing the Prearraignment Process under SB 10 without court review. This image shows the overall process in very broad terms Infographic - Prearraignment Process under SB 10 - Overview PDF file type icon Infographic showing the pretrial process under SB 10 from arraignment to trial Infographic - Pretrial Process under SB 10 - Arraignment to Trial PDF file type icon Frequently Asked Questions expand all collapse all Does SB 10, the pretrial reform legislation, mean a judge has less discretion to decide who to detain or release before trial? Under SB 10, will an algorithm decide who is eligible for release before trial? No. The risk assessment tools that Pretrial Assessment Services uses contain algorithms that weigh various factors to measure the level of a person’s risk to reoffend or fail to appear if released pretrial. Although Pretrial Assessment Services will have authority to release low and some medium-risk individual before arraignment, judicial officers remain the final authority in making pretrial release or detention decisions. The risk-level information obtained from the risk assessment tool, combined with the recommendation provided by Pretrial Services, will inform the judge’s decision. But in every case the judicial officer can override the recommendation. What are the benefits of a Pretrial Assessment System? What California counties have used pretrial assessment systems? What percentage of the people held in California jails are unsentenced? What is the size of California’s bail industry? Have other U.S. states implemented bail reform?
| Types | Organization |