Pass the California Money Bail Reform Act!
Under California’s broken, unfair money bail system, innocent people are regularly imprisoned for days at a time -- and sometimes even weeks or months -- just because they can’t afford to pay for bail.
Some people even choose to plead guilty to crimes they didn’t commit just so that they can get out of jail more quickly. That is mind-numbingly wrong -- it goes against everything we stand for as Americans and as Californians. And we can't call ourselves progressive if we're not taking a powerful stance against this awful reality.
The California Money Bail Reform Act would change this reality -- and that makes it one of the most important blows for justice we could make during this legislative session. But the powerful bail industry is doing a full court press in the California Assembly. They're using fearmongering tactics to convince Democratic legislators to kill this important reform, which will be voted on next week.
If we speak out now, we can create a drumbeat of public support that drowns out the bail industry and powers bail reform to victory!
Sign the petition below asking your lawmakers to support bail reform in California:
I urge you to end California's broken money bail system by voting for the California Money Bail Reform Act -- SB 10 -- by Senator Hertzberg. The current system costs too much money and delivers poor results. It leads to overcrowding in our jails. And it runs counter to the interests of justice by punishing innocent people with jail time just for being unable to afford the cost of bail.
I support a new system that meaningfully assesses the risk presented by each individual who comes before a court -- not the one-size-fits-all approach of the past that costs California an estimated $1.8 billion annually. Please do everything in your power to pass SB 10.
