Bail and Pretrial

Sheriff Tom Dart has been a leading voice pushing for bail reform in Cook County, seeking to free more suspects who await trial behind bars on nonviolent charges. But a lawsuit challenging the system pits Dart against other advocates of change.

In October, Cook County bond court judges and the sheriff were sued on behalf of arrestees who challenged the constitutional basis of deciding who remains locked up before trial based on their ability to raise cash. Now, the judges and the sheriff are contending the case should be thrown out of court.

As Cook County and other jurisdictions around the country struggle over bail reform, New Orleans adopts ordinance: No cash bail for most minor crimes. City Council passage breaks bottleneck caused, in part, by opposition from bail bond industry.