The Fair Defense Project | Recommendation 2

Recommendation 2: Texas Should Improve Access to Bond Options.

Restrictive bond policies for low-level, non-violent offenders in county jails create increased costs – resulting from book-in and longer detentions – and exacerbate jail overcrowding. Additionally, bonds that are disproportionately high increase a county’s expenditures on indigent defense: when non-violent indigent defendants use all their assets to obtain release on an excessively high bond, they may be less likely to pay for their own private attorney. Counties that provide non-violent criminal defendants with early and repeated opportunities to post bond realize system-wide benefits including reduced costs for processing and detention of non-violent defendants and increased jail safety.

Options to support counties in their appropriate and effective use of bonds include:

The use of bond schedules to increase uniformity of bonds. By using bond schedules that serve as a standardized guide for bond-setting authorities (like magistrates), counties could reduce unjustified disparities in bond amounts and reduce the likelihood that local magistrates will set unreasonably high bonds for non-violent offenders who have a very low flight risk. Note: recommended bond schedules should be established on a county basis and should be permissive.

Clearly set parameters and guidance for the use of Personal Recognizance (PR) Bonds. When a bonding authority has determined that a defendant will appear for trial without additional precautions, the accused is released on his or her own recognizance (with a PR Bond) instead of requiring imprisonment or a surety bond. PR Bonds are typically utilized if the crime charged is not violent, and if the accused is not considered a threat to the community or a flight risk. Many counties that make use of PR Bonds on a regular basis find that they are able to use this system as a way to manage their jail population. Bonding authorities should have a clear statutory authority to issue PR Bonds, and they should have a clear set of factors to use in determining when a defendant is eligible for a PR bond.

A statutory provision which would allow counties to accept partial cash bonds. The Code of Criminal Procedure must be amended to allow counties to accept partial cash bonds. Counties choosing to utilize a partial cash bond option could deposit bond payments into an interest-bearing account which would serve as a funding source to offset the administrative costs of operating a pre-trial screening program. Defendants allowed to submit partial cash bonds would have a greater ability to pay for their own private representation, saving the county additional indigent defense expenses.