Overview

Most people in jail have not been convicted of a crime. Instead, they have been accused of a crime and cannot afford to post the bail amount to guarantee their freedom until trial. Punishing Poverty examines how the current system of pretrial release detains hundreds of thousands of defendants awaiting trial. Tracing the historical antecedents of the US bail system, with particular attention to the failures of bail reform efforts in the mid to late twentieth century, the authors describe the painful social and economic impact of contemporary bail decisions. The first book-length treatment to analyze how bail reproduces racial and economic inequality throughout the criminal justice system, Punishing Poverty explores reform efforts, as jurisdictions begin to move away from money bail systems, and the attempts of the bail bond industry to push back against such reforms. This accessibly written book gives a succinct overview of the role of pretrial detention in fueling mass incarceration and is essential reading for researchers and reformers alike.  

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9780520298309

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Reviews

Scott-Hayward and Fradella provide an accessible look at policies in bail setting and pretrial treatment that have historically been favorable to suspects who are affluent. . . . A useful resource for students, researchers, and activists studying criminal justice reform, and a cautionary tale for policy makers, this book offers a fair balance between advocating for equality in bail-setting and for use of citation over arrests in some cases, while taking into consideration public safety. * CHOICE * Scott-Hayward and Fredella have written a thorough, subtle, moving, and fair-minded introduction to the contemporary bail reform movement. It is a valuable resource for anyone who cares about fairness and rationality in the administration of justice. Here is hoping that it finds the broad audience that it deserves. * Law & Society Review * It is a book clear enough to be read by general audiences, detailed enough to be used by graduate students in criminology and law, and comprehensive enough to be a resource to academic scholars. But it is also a book that should be studied by practitioners-judges, magistrates, prosecutors, defense counsel, and probation and pretrial services officers-as well as policy makers such as legislators, agency heads, budget officers, and criminal justice policy wonks. All could learn, could understand, just how exceptional the US bail system is, and could draw upon this wealth of knowledge in implementing meaningful reform. * Criminal Law and Criminal Justice Books *

Scott-Hayward and Fradella provide an accessible look at policies in bail setting and pretrial treatment that have historically been favorable to suspects who are affluent. . . . A useful resource for students, researchers, and activists studying criminal justice reform, and a cautionary tale for policy makers, this book offers a fair balance between advocating for equality in bail-setting and for use of citation over arrests in some cases, while taking into consideration public safety. * CHOICE *

Author Information

Christine S. Scott-Hayward is Associate Professor of Law, Criminology, and Criminal Justice at California State University, Long Beach.   Henry F. Fradella is Professor of Criminology and Criminal Justice and Affiliate Professor of Law at Arizona State University. Fradella is the author or coauthor of a dozen books, including Stop and Frisk and America’s Courts and the Criminal Justice System.  

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