Middlesex DA Makes Progress On Bail Reform

WOBURN, MA -- Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan released a report Thursday highlighting efforts over the past year to reform how her offices asks for bail in criminal cases. In a post on Twitter, Ryan said she was also making raw data in the report available to Northeastern University to bring more equality to the system her office uses to request bail.

"Over a year ago I pledged to bring meaningful, progressive change to our Office’s bail policy. We have also focused on our diversion efforts," Ryan said. "Since any analysis which does not include the racial and socioeconomic impact that our policies are having is inherently incomplete, I have created a partnership with Northeastern University to study this aspect of the data. Their report also will be made public."

The data cover the 34,982 active cases, including 23,109 new cases, the Middlesex District Attorney's office covered in the 2018 calendar year. Base don her work on criminal justice reform with the Middlesex Chiefs of Police, the Massachusetts Legislature, members of the defense bar, Ryan was seeking to reduce the number of cases in which the office requested bail. The report says the effort is part of the office's effort to better understand "the full impact that the criminal justice system has on people’s lives."

The Middlesex DA's office did not request bail in 72.86 percent of the 14,407 cases not settled at arraignment in District Courts in 2018. In Juvenile Court, the office did not request bail in 88.82 percent of the 456 cases not settled at arraignment. In Superior and District Court cases pending trial, there were just 5 percent of defendants being held at any given time.

The office was also able to divert 267, or 72.95 percent, of its juvenile cases to the office's Juvenile Diversion Program. The office also diverted 194 cases, or 83.26 percent, to the Middlesex District Attorney's Office's Young Adult Diversion Program. Both programs provide alternatives to prosecution.

"I will continue to work hard each day to make our criminal justice system more fair and more just. I look forward to future conversations about our Office's data," Ryan said.

Dave Copeland can be reached at dave.copeland@patch.com or by calling 617-433-7851. Follow him on Twitter (@CopeWrites) and Facebook (/copewrites).