Pretrial Release in Criminal Courts: a Study of Three Oregon Counties

Abstract

Pretrial release (PTR) is the permanent or temporary freedom from incarceration for criminal defendants awaiting adjjudication of their cases in COI.lrt. From Anglo Saxon times in England, peqple accused: of non-capital crimes were generally permitted to remain free until judi<;ial officials i could hear the charges against them. :In America, pretrial release has be:en advocated by the courts since the coJonial era., The U. S. Constitution requires t.hat bail not be excessive, but leaves gov~~rnments ftee to decide how bail laws are administered. The study briefly traces the historical developments of PTR up to the present time. The study then cente~'s on the PTR process of three Oregon counties~Multnomah, Washington, and Yarylhill) and observes the decisions of jUQges, relea$e assistance officers, and jailers in relation to the release outcomes for a stuc/y group (~~= 619) who were booked into jails of the three !counties in 1993. Background data on defendants in the study include gend~~r, race, the l!:rimes for which they were aqested, criminal history, and the disposition of the current c:harges.