In Depth
In-Depth: Positive Changes to Pretrial Policy During COVID
 An as-yet-unpublished survey of pretrial practices during the pandemic was released to the Crime Report by the National Association of Pretrial Services Agencies (NAPSA). NAPSA’s mission “is to promote pretrial justice and public safety through rational pretrial decision making and practices informed by evidence.” The organization works to “provide evidence-based standards and education to individuals and agencies.” The unpublished survey, which will be discussed in more detail at NAPSA’s national conference in September, is an example of the work NAPSA does and the tools they provide.
 The survey was conducted over three months—April through June—and collected responses from 197 agencies in 41 states. The survey’s purpose was to examine what changes programs and jurisdictions have made during the virus, how the changes have affected program effectiveness, and the impact on public safety. NAPSA also noted that the survey was intended to “[f]oster dialogue with NAPSA and pretrial services agencies about sustaining new policies” and that they plan for the findings of the survey to be a “guide” for “our thinking and future work.”
One of the primary changes noted in the survey was the decrease of pretrial jail populations. The survey documents a:
- 65.17 percent increase in the use of ‘cite and release’ by law enforcement
- 67.98 percent increase in releases on personal recognizance in nonviolent cases
- 81.46 percent increase in releases from jail for persons awaiting trial.
Other significant changes reported in the survey included:
- Reduced police contact with civilians, resulting in an 84.57 percent decrease in custodial arrests.
- Most court hearings being postponed
- Bail amounts decreased by 59.88 percent.
- 50%+ reduction in:
- Criminal filings for specific charges (e.g., nonviolent charges)
- The issuing and executing of warrants for failure to pay fines and fees
- The issuing and executing of warrants for failure to appear.
- Revocations for technical violations of pretrial condition violations
- 11.73 percent decrease in fine and fee amounts
- Delayed collection of court-related fines and fees
- Most jurisdictions reported increasing their use of virtual tools:
- video-based court hearings
- telephone check-ins
- electronic monitoring
- virtual reporting via email, video conferencing, and phone calls
- Most jurisdictions temporarily suspended:
- in-person office check-ins
- in-person field check-ins
 However, the survey notes that not all the program changes brought about by the pandemic have been positive, stating that some of the standard rehabilitative efforts made by the courts have been hindered by the need for physical distancing. Specifically, drug and alcohol testing—a typical accountability measure for many programs—has been placed on hold.
Over the last few months, whether or not to continue drug testing during the pandemic has been hotly debated in the justice field. Especially since, during the pandemic, fatal drug overdoses have risen in the United States. Experts in the field have come down on both sides of the debate; however, regardless of their stance on testing—temporarily suspend or business as usual with enhanced precautions—both sides have strongly advocated for increased support of all individuals in programs.
 Jim Sawyer, the executive director of NAPSA, believes that most of the policies that programs have put into place during the pandemic can be carried into the future. He said, “It is very possible that some of the quote-unquote new practices, which are practices that we’ve put in our national [pretrial] release standards… will stick around—and rightly so.”
The Crime Report notes that “[r]ehabilitation aside, the findings from the NAPSA survey demonstrate that jurisdictions can release people from pretrial detention, reduce police contact with civilians, and modernize the way it conducts hearings and other meetings.”
However, arguably, the most important finding made by NAPSA as they conducted the survey pertained to public safety. The survey showed that jurisdictions that decreased their pretrial populations and made other changes to their programs, showed no correlating increase in crime. Suggesting that the changes made to operating procedures during the pandemic can be implemented in the long-term safely.
Read More or Read the Survey
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