‘This is unjust:’ TN bill changes financing role in setting bail
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Tennessee lawmakers passed a bill Tuesday impacting how judges set bail for people suspected of committing crimes in the Volunteer State.
Memphis area Republican State Representative John Gillespie filed HB 1719. The legislation “removes the defendant’s financial condition as a consideration for the magistrate in determining the amount of bail necessary to reasonably assure the appearance of the defendant at trial and protect the safety of the public.”
“The ability to pay is one of several considerations that a judge should look at because it matters to who ultimately is being granted their liberty and what you are articulating with this legislation is that richer people and wealthier people have more of a right to their liberty than poor folks who also could be proven innocent or not guilty when things are adjudicated,” said State Representative Justin Pearson (D-Memphis). “You are supporting wealth-based detention that if you are poor and possibly innocent you get treated worse than people, as Bryan Stevenson would say, are rich but guilty.”
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The debate over the bill came after an 18-year-old was let out of jail on his own recognizance just weeks before he and a Memphis police officer died in a shootout. The teen was previously arrested for possessing a glock turned into a machine gun and for confessing to stealing cars.
“I’m trying to make our community safer and this is the way that I’m doing it,” Gillespie told fellow lawmakers Tuesday.
Democrat Representative Justin Jones from Nashville pointed to the constitution prohibiting excessive bail, saying it means someone’s finances should be considered.
“It is a cruel bill. We love to talk about religiosity in this building. There’s a scripture that says when I was in jail did you come visit me, not did you keep me in jail by keeping me in poverty and having a separate justice system for people like Donald Trump who can pay for his bail — he was in court this week — and regular folk who can’t afford excessive hundreds of thousands of dollars, million dollar bail,” said Jones. “In our system of justice you are presumed innocent until found guilty in court. And so you’re going to be keeping people in jail some of whom many of whom could be innocent and saying that because you’re poor you have to stay in jail. That is cruel. That is unjust. That is immoral.”
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Republican State Representative William Lamberth argued that what’s guaranteed by the law is a reasonable bail. He also said everyone is innocent until proven guilty but when bail is set, it shouldn’t be ignored that a judge determined there’s probable cause that a crime had been committed. Lawmakers also debated the role of bail when it comes to public safety.
“It’s not just the amount of bond. It’s the conditions of bond. Is it aggravated domestic assault. Is it rape. The conditions of bond can say stay away from that person. So when you’re looking at the ability to pay and that’s the only thing you’re looking at you’re ignoring the entire rest of the statute to the detriment of a community that had 399 people killed last year,” Lamberth said. “There is blood running in the streets of Memphis today because they’re letting people out that should have a bond and condition.”
Jones also argued the bill could lead to more overcrowding at jails in Tennessee and potential lawsuits for keeping people in jail. Ultimately, the bill passed the house by a vote of 74 to 20 after previously passing the senate. This now will head to the governor’s desk.
Click here for more on HB 1719.
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