Thoughtful and in-depth research from Michael Rempel and DCJ explores when courts follow and when they deviate from CJA's Release Assessment Recommendation. Administered to nearly every person arrested in NYC, and recently re-validated for its accuracy, the RA is highly effective at predicting court appearance and even re-offense rate. While its a trusted tool throughout the court system, judges often decline to follow the recommendation for a number of reasons. This new research suggests that this may lead to unnecessary pretrial detention for people with high likelihood of returning to court. At CJA, we believe that transparency and public safety are not at odds. They grow stronger when grounded in data, accountability, and shared trust.
NEW RESEARCH: A new DCJ analysis finds that judges often diverge from New York City’s validated Pretrial Release Assessment. From 2021 to 2023, NYC’s Pretrial Release Assessment recommended release on recognizance (ROR) for nearly 80% of people charged with a felony. Yet judges frequently departed from these recommendations: ➡️Judges followed ROR recommendations in only 30% of violent felonies and 51% of nonviolent felonies. ➡️Racial disparities in alignment: In violent felony cases, judges implemented ROR recommendations just 26% of the time for Black people compared with 43% for white people. Conversely, judges set bail or remand in these same cases on 44% of Black people compared with 29% of white people. ➡️Borough differences were also pronounced, with Bronx judges most aligned with the assessment, and Staten Island judges least. The Pretrial Release Assessment has been validated twice, suggesting it makes empirically and legally sound recommendations. Yet judges often deviate from its recommendations. This non-alignment with ROR recommendations can result in unnecessary pretrial supervision or incarceration of people already likely to return to court. https://lnkd.in/exQEcnUH