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Pretrial Services Standards Checklist

In 2020, New York State adopted criminal justice reform legislation that eliminated money bail and pretrial detention for individuals charged with nearly all misdemeanor and non-violent felony crimes.1 In conjunction with the new legislation, New York’s 2020 Pretrial Standards2 defines how pretrial services should operate in providing judges with best practice alternatives to money bail or other forms of financial surety to ensure the charged individual’s appearance in court. The legislation requires each county to have a certified pretrial services program; as such, the standards are useful in helping existing programs assess and improve their pretrial administration, program delivery, and use of technology and data collection practices. Likewise, counties establishing new pretrial programs can use these standards to inform program development and prioritize policy and practice changes that reflect the essential elements and best practices for fair and equitable pretrial program delivery. Finally, these standards can be a center point to bring jurisdictions in the criminal justice community and its partners together for collaborative strategic planning and resource sharing.