Commercial Bail Bonds in New York City: Characteristics and Implications (2011)

Abstract

This report updates and expands upon a recent study of bail making by the New York City Criminal Justice Agency, Inc. (CJA), which found that bail bondsmen play a much larger role in New York City than they once did (Phillips 2010a). The research revealed that bonds accounted for 15% of all bail releases in the study sample, and 21% of cases with bail set at $1,000 or more. This report provides that update with the presentation of supplementary bond data for all four of the largest boroughs and expands the analyses to consider the implications for bail setting suggested by the citywide data.