A new report from the CUNY Institute for State and Local Governance measures the effectiveness of local justice reforms in 14 cities and counties engaged in the Safety and Justice Challenge from May 2016 to April 2019.

The new funding will support 15 cities and counties that are already working to reduce over-incarceration and advance racial equity in local criminal justice systems

Using independent data, researchers found that a 2017 general order by the Chief Judge of the Circuit Court of Cook County increased the number of people released pretrial and was not associated with any significant change in new criminal activity, violent or otherwise.

There are concerns about plea bargaining’s role in fueling mass incarceration. The Vera Institute of Justice, with support from the Safety and Justice Challenge, examined the small but growing body of empirical studies that has developed around plea bargaining.

On any given night in the United States, more than 550,000 people are experiencing homelessness. Among these, 96,000 are chronically homeless, meaning they are facing long and repeated episodes of homelessness that make it increasingly difficult to return to housing. The time has come for local justice systems to take immediate action to halt the cycle of homelessness and jail incarceration.

Releasing people who pose little threat to their communities both benefits public health and allows people to stay with their jobs and families during these uncertain times.