The California State Senate approved a bill Wednesday eliminating bail for most non-violent offenses, prompting Senate Republican Leader Scott Wilk (R-Santa Clarita) to respond.
Wilk opposed the passing of Senate Bill 262 (SB 262) through the state senate on Wednesday, which would implement a zero-bail policy for most non-violent offenses in California and Santa Clarita.
“Zero bail is a fail,” Wilk said. “It was tested in 2020 during the pandemic and a similar policy was rejected by voters in November 2020.”
SB 262 would require bail be set at $0 for most non-violent offenses.
Crimes not eligible for $0 bail include violent felonies, violations of protective orders, battery against a spouse, sex offenses and driving under the influence.
With a zero bail policy, a person accused of committing a criminal offense qualifying for $0 bail would be booked by local authorities, given a court date then released before arriving at court.
Opponents of the bill say it can result in the release of dangerous criminals.
They also argue the policy is ineffective because those accused of criminal offenses can enter into a cycle of being arrested, given a court date, released, ignoring their court date or committing another crime, being arrested again, being given another court date, and so on.
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The bill cites findings that most inmates in California jails had not yet been convicted of or sentenced for a crime. The zero bail policy aims to reduce the number of inmates awaiting trial and mitigate the negative effects of pretrial detention, according to the bill.
Additionally, the bill text states one of the bill’s goals is to reduce the effect of California’s “predatory” money bail industry.
“Today Democrats doubled down on an idea rejected by voters and already proven to be dangerous to our communities,” said Wilk. “Social experiments are one thing on paper, but by listening to law enforcement and crime victims, it was pretty clear these policies failed in real life.”
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