Cohort 2025
The Defender Association of Philadelphia
Exploring the Use of Bail and Pretrial Detention Appeals by Judges
Philadelphia, PA
Pretrial detention often bears little to no correlation with public safety (PDF) and is largely driven by the defendant’s ability to pay cash bail. Cash bail disproportionately affects Black people; one study (PDF) found that Black people are less likely to be released on their own recognizance and more likely to receive cash bail amounts higher than their white counterparts. Moreover, Black and Hispanic defendants disproportionately make up pretrial jail populations. In response to these disparities, the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office instituted a new policy (PDF) that assistant district attorneys would no longer ask for cash bail for a variety of misdemeanors and felonies, unless in scenarios where “justice requires” and supervisors approve its use. Ultimately, arraignment court magistrates make final bail determinations, and there is a lack of transparency and data on how the magistrates make these decisions, including how often they impose cash bail against an agreement between the assistant district attorney and the public defender.
With Catalyst grant funding, the Defender Association of Philadelphia aims to close critical gaps in knowledge about pretrial detention by leveraging innovative technology solutions. It will develop a comprehensive database to capture information about arraignment court and bail appeals, which could help uncover patterns in magistrate decisionmaking, highlight racial and geographic disparities, and surface other demographic trends. It will track outcomes of bail appeals through its internal case management system, supported by standardized forms completed by defenders after each hearing. It will also supplement that information with a form each defender fills out after each hearing for bail appeals that details magistrate decisionmaking. The resulting dataset will inform internal practices and serve as a valuable tool to educate the Philadelphia community about pretrial detention and decisionmaking.
The Defender Association of Philadelphia was also a Catalyst grantee in 2022. Read about its 2022 project Toward Driving Equality: Analyzing and Visualizing Philadelphia Police Department Vehicle Stop Data.
