In a recent Daily Journal article entitled “Bail policy changes falter as courts resist individualized hearings,” which explores how civil rights lawyers are working to end cash bail systems in California counties that keep defendants jailed while awaiting trial, Kate Mangels discussed how the current system warrants changes.
The article examines how a public defender and Civil Rights Corps lawyer are currently pursuing a habeas petition on behalf of their client Malcolm Vaughn, an individual whose bail was set at $120,000 and $25,000 for a drug possession case – significantly above Vaughn’s means. The petition hopes to leverage a 2021 state Supreme Court opinion (re: Kenneth Humphrey on Habeas Corpus) which held that conditioning pretrial detention on an arrestee’s resources is, in most cases, unconstitutional.
“This issue is huge,” Kate tells the Daily Journal. “Even a couple of days in detention can be very disruptive and detrimental to one’s family, career, and mental health,” she adds.
She continues on to note that while Humphrey was an extremely important decision, it did not give clear rules or procedures for assigning bail. “It leaves quite a bit to the judge’s discretion,” she shares, calling efforts on behalf of Vaughn and others “a great use of resources to fix that.”
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