Be the change. Find ways to promote bail reform for the states that need it.

Learn more about Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida.

Louisiana

Louisiana has an incarceration rate of 1,094 per 100,000 people, including jails, prisons, juvenile facilities, and immigration detentions. 50,000 citizens are behind bars, with 21,000 people in local jails and 26,000 in state prisons. Prison Policy Initiative found that at least 86,000 different people are booked into local jails in Louisiana each year. Louisiana has yet to implement bail reform, perpetuating the disproportionate number of people who are detained because of their socioeconomic status. Troy Carter, representative of Louisiana, is firm believer in bail reform. Show your support of his efforts.

Alabama

43,000 people from Alabama are behind bars, with 14,000 residing in local jails and 25,000 in state prisons. Interestingly, pretrial policies have driven a recent jail growth in Alabama and approximately 8,000 people are in jail with a pretrial status. Many of these same people are jailed pretrial simply because they can’t afford money bail, while others remain in detention without a conviction because a state or federal government agency has placed a “hold” on their release. Therefore, 74% of people in Alabama jails have not yet been convicted of a crime, meaning they're legally innocent. Alabama congresswoman Terri Sewell, supporter of the passage of prison reform, needs to hear your concerns with the current pretrial processes.

Florida

In Florida, there has been a 275% increase in incarceration rates between 1983 and 2015. More specifically, there has been a 513% increase in jail population since 1970. Studies have found that Black people are more likely to be stopped by the police, detained pretrial, charged with more serious crimes, and sentenced more harshly than white people. This perpetuates a cycle of poverty and inequality, disproportionately impacting marginalized communities. Governor Ron DeSantis, an avid opponent of bail reform, needs to hear your voice on why bail reform is essential.

Mississippi

Since 1970, the total jail population has increased by over 704%. Unsurprisingly, pretrial detainees constituted 55% of the total jail population in Mississippi as of 2015. Even though the Black community only makes up 39% of Mississippi’s population, 57% of the jail population is Black. Most people in Mississippi’s county jails have been locked up at least three months without formal charges while waiting to go on trial. Some have longer wait times because two-thirds of the counties only convene grand juries two or three times a year. Therefore, if you get arrested in one of the counties where grand juries rarely meet, you may remain in jail for months or even years just waiting to be indicted, and spend more time behind bars simply because of geographic misfortune. Solange MacArthur Justice Center, has attorney’s currently fighting for bail reform in Mississippi. Contact MacArthur Justice and find ways to get involved.