How the bail process works in Kentucky as lawmakers push to get it changed

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- States across the country have differing laws on bail bonds. In Kentucky, a judge ultimately has the final say on the exact dollar amount of a set bail.

When a person is arrested, a judge immediately reviews the case file, taking into consideration the charges, citation narrative and the person's criminal history. They then determine the initial bail amount.

"They're going to make that determination based upon the charges, based upon the narrative of the citation, based upon the person's criminal history or lack thereof, and based upon a pretrial services report," said local attorney Brian Butler.

The offender will then appear in court, usually the morning following the arrest, for an arraignment. That person is appearing in front of a judge for the first time to enter a plea and have the final bail amount set.

The county attorney, or prosecuting attorney, will either agree with the current bail amount or argue for a higher dollar.

The defense attorney often argues for a lower bail amount for the client. Ultimately, the sitting judge at the time of arraignment will set the bail amount.

"Criminal history, following court orders or not following court orders, attendance in court, connections to the community, the nature of the circumstances, the offense all sort of go into the mix, but ultimately it's the judge's discretion of what the bond should be," Butler said.

In the case of 21-year-old Quintez Brown, who police say fired multiple rounds at Louisville mayoral candidate Craig Greenberg, the bail amount was raised from $75,000 to $100,000 at his arraignment.

The Louisville Community Bail Fund paid the full amount to get Brown released on Wednesday.

His release has prompted discussions around Kentucky's bail process, and lawmakers are trying to stop organizations like the Bail Fund.

"We support low-level offenders getting out of jail, going back to their job, to go back to their families," said Rep. Jason Nemes, R-Louisville. "But when they've committed a violent offense, especially when they tried to assassinate someone running for mayor of Louisville, those corporations shouldn't be bailing anyone out."

Rep. Nemes is the sponsor of a bill that would block charitable organizations from bailing individuals out of jail.

House Bill 313 could be voted on as soon as next week on the House floor.

"Right now, this group is running amok (and) doesn't have any care for public safety," Nemes said. "And so we have to shut them down."

There are also conversations around completely eliminating the bail system in Kentucky. Those in favor argue that judges should be left with the decision to either detain or release offenders until a trial or the case is settled.

"It sounds perfect in a situation when everyone in the community is focused on this one individual and his alleged actions against Craig Greenberg, but saying let's eliminate cash bail because if we did this person might be in jail, and he's not today, in reality it makes people much less safe over time," said Butler.

Butler argues that jail populations would become overwhelming if judges were too harsh, or crime rates would skyrocket if judges were too lenient and only detained violent offenders.

He cautions lawmakers to see the bigger picture before legislating.

"If you make a law based only on one case, you're going to end up with a really bad law that has, often times, really bad consequences," he said.

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