That’s the logic behind Greensboro Police Chief Ken Miller’s opposition to a bill limiting pretrial services that allow poor defendants to get out of jail without posting bond:
“State law allows a person to enter into a loan agreement with a bail bondsman and get out of jail on credit,” Miller said. “The payment plan is usually unreasonable, and the person reverts to crime to stay out of jail. It’s going to make our cities and counties unsafer.”
Lots of issues going on here, including whether or not government is competing with the private bail bond industry,as Rep. Mike Hager claims. Definitely a different twist on the public sector vs. private sector debate.
Opponents of the bill say restricting pretrial services will result in some defendants staying in jail longer than necessary, costing counties more money. Guilford County has a fat new jail, so it’s hard for this law-abiding citizen to see where cost is an issue there.
