Sen. Haggan Wants Judges and Commissioners to Have More Say Over Who Gets Bail

Noting an uptick of crime in Maine committed by individuals out on bail for a previous offense, Sen. David Haggan (R-Penobscot) wants to roll back provisions of a 2021 law that made it easier for those being held under suspicion of committing a crime to get released on bail.

LD 1536, “An Act to Amend the Laws Governing Bail,” would, Sen. Haggan said in testimony before the legislature’s Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee on Wednesday, “correct bail reform’s over-reach because Maine’s current bail laws are not working.”

Supported by five Republican co-sponsors, Haggan’s measure would also, he said, give judges and bail commissioners the ability to weigh in on bail conditions, which were loosened four years ago. The Penobscot County Sheriff’s office and Brewer Police Department both testified in favor of LD 1536, saying it would make their jobs a lot easier.

According to a research paper by the University of Utah’s Law School, more generous bail conditions studied in Illinois’ Cook County coincided with a 45 percent increase in crimes committed by those out on bail.

In addition to expanding who gets input on granting bail, the bill would set a $60 floor on granting the conditional, pre-trial release. Sheriffs’ offices could create funding pools to assist those unable to meet this minimum, the bill language states. By eliminating the cash requirement, the bail reform measure passed into law by the 130th Legislature opened the floodgates, law enforcement officers attending the hearing testified.

Committee member Rep. Nina Milliken (D-Blue Hill) asked the Penobscot County Sheriff if this measure would create additional overcrowding pressure at his county jail, and he replied it would not. As the committee’s membership consists of a number of retired law enforcement officers, those around the horseshoe were otherwise less eager to find fault with the bill.

Jan Collins of the Maine Prisoner Advocacy Coalition; however, took issue with the $60 cash bail requirement and stated that it would prevent many from accessing bail. “There is something patently undemocratic about money being a prerequisite for freedom instead of the severity of the alleged crime,” she testified.

Michael Kebede of the Maine chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union also raised questions about any effort to roll back the 2021 bail reform law and called for a loosening of restrictions around Class E crimes. “Enacting LD 1536 would move us away from the principle of the 2021 amendments, back to an inequitable system for Class E crimes,” he said.

The bill will now be considered in a yet-to-be scheduled work session.