Advancing Bail and Pretrial Justice Reform in Arizona
Henry F. Fradella** & Christine S. Scott-Hayward*** Full Article. I. Introduction In its 2017 “State of Pretrial Justice in America” report, the Pretrial Justice Institute (“PJI”) praised Arizona’s pretrial justice reform efforts.[1] Arizona was one of nine states awarded a “B” grade (only one state—New Jersey—received an “A” grade).[2] Arizona was also named a “state to watch.”[3] Other commentators and news outlets have highlighted Arizona’s efforts and argue that it is one of the jurisdictions at the forefront of bail reform.[4] Although we agree that Arizona has taken some key steps toward creating a just and effective bail system,[5] more needs to be done before the state becomes a true leader in pretrial justice. Arizona remains a state with high numbers of unconvicted people in its jails.[6] Of the approximately…