A bill that would set guidelines for determining who can be released from jail on bail passed out of a Senate committee Tuesday.
The proposal says people who do not present a substantial risk of fleeing or danger should be released without bail. It excludes those under court-ordered supervision, those facing other charges and those who are charged with murder.
Indiana Public Defender Council Executive Director Larry Landis testified during the committee hearing and says Indiana's current bail system is broken.
"The reality is if you're poor, you stay in jail," Landis says. "If you have money, you can bond out no matter how dangerous you are."
The proposal comes after the Indiana Supreme Court adopted Criminal Rule 26 last year, which asks courts to use evidence-based risk assessments to help make pre-trial release decisions. Chief Justice Loretta Rush wrote in the order that "the prompt release of arrestees who do not pose a risk to public safety is associated with reduced recidivism and eliminates unnecessary expenses resulting from the overutilization of local jail resources."
The bail bill passed out of committee 8-1 and will now head to the Senate floor.