http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/17/opinion/a-formula-to-make-bail-more-fair.html 2016-09-17 05:21:02 A Formula to Make Bail More Fair A new system may reduce unnecessary jail time for low-income defendants. === Judges in San Francisco’s courts long used a fixed schedule based on the criminal charge as a starting point for setting bail. Too often, this system left defendants who posed little risk to the community sitting in jail because they couldn’t afford bail. That could change now that San Francisco has introduced a new scoring system to help judges determine bail based on a defendant’s risk of committing another crime or failing to appear in court. Judges can still make their own bail decisions if they don’t agree with the system’s results. The group Equal Justice Under Law sued the city last year, arguing that the old approach to bail violated equal protection under the Constitution by keeping poor defendants in jail while letting wealthier ones accused of the same crime pay their way out. The new scoring system, developed by the Laura and John Arnold Foundation, uses nine factors to estimate risk, including a defendant’s age, whether the charge is a violent offense, prior convictions and previous failures to appear in court. It does not take into account race or gender, and judges still have the final say in setting bail. This tool is in use in about 30 other cities and states, several of which have seen encouraging results. After Lucas County, Ohio, which includes Toledo, began using the Unnecessary jail time harms defendants and may actually increase crime. Low-income defendants often have less secure jobs and are in danger of being fired if they miss work. Researchers have found that for defendants at low risk of re-offending, more pretrial jail time was associated with a higher risk of committing crimes in the future. The use of scoring systems in criminal justice has raised concerns in the past. An analysis by It is too soon to tell how the new bail system will perform in San Francisco;