The problem with the U.S. bail system - Camilo Ramirez

譯者: Lilian Chiu 審譯者: Helen Chang

Since 2000, the annual number of people convicted of crimes in the United States

自 2000 年起，

美國每年犯罪的人數一直都很穩定，

has stayed steady, but the average number of people in jail each year has shot up.

但每年坐牢的平均人數卻飆升。

How can that be?

怎麼會這樣？

The answer lies in the bail system—

答案藏在保釋制度當中——

which isn’t doing what it was intended to do.

這個制度並沒有做到它的本意。

The term "bail" refers to the release of people awaiting trial

「保釋」一詞指的是 將等候審判的人釋放出來，

on condition that they return to court to face charges.

條件是他們要返回法庭面對控訴。

Countries around the world use many variations of bail,

全世界各地的國家 有各種不同形式的保釋，

and some don’t use it at all.

有些國家甚至沒有保釋。

The U.S. bail system relies primarily on what’s called cash bail,

美國保釋制度主要仰賴 所謂的現金保釋金，

which was supposed to work like this:

它的運作方式理當是這樣的：

When a person was accused of a crime,

當有人被指控犯罪時，

the judge would set a reasonable price for bail.

法官會定出合理的保釋金價格。

The accused would pay this fee in order to be released from jail

被告支付這筆費用後 就會被釋放，離開監獄，

until the court reached a verdict on the case.

直到法庭對他的案件做出裁決。

Once the case ended, whether found guilty or innocent,

案件結束後，不論他被認定有罪或無辜，

they’d get the bail money back if they made all their court appearances.

只要該出席法庭時都有到場， 就能把保釋金拿回來。

The rationale behind this system is that under U.S. law,

這個體制背後的基本理由是， 在美國法律之下，

people are presumed innocent until proven guilty—

每個人在證明有罪之前 都會被假設是無辜的——

so someone accused of a crime should not be imprisoned

所以被控訴犯罪的人不應該被囚禁，

unless they’ve been convicted of a crime.

除非他被定罪。

But today, the bail system in the U.S.

但現今的美國保釋制度

doesn’t honor the presumption of innocence.

並沒有尊重這個無辜的前題假設。

Instead, it subverts peoples’ rights and causes serious harm,

反之，這個制度破壞了 人民的權利並造成嚴重的傷害，

particularly to people in low-income communities

特別是對低收入族群

and communities of color.

以及有色人種族群。

A key reason why is the cost of bail.

關鍵原因是保釋金的價碼。

In order for cash bail to work as intended,

如果要讓現金保釋金 做到原本的目的，

the price has to be affordable for the accused.

就應該是被告負擔得起的價碼。

The cost of bail wasn’t meant to reflect the likelihood of someone’s guilt—

保釋金的價碼不應該是在反應 被告確實有罪的可能性——

when bail is set, the court has not reviewed evidence.

設定保釋金的數額時， 法庭尚未檢視過證據。

Under exceptional circumstances, such as charges of very serious crimes,

在特殊的情況中，

比如因非常嚴重的犯罪而被罪起訴，

judges could deny bail and jail the accused before their trial.

法官可以否決保釋，並在審判前 就先將被告關入監牢。

Judges were supposed to exercise this power very rarely,

法官會行使此權力的機率本應很低，

and could come under scrutiny for using it too often.

如果太常使用，應該會受到監督。

Setting unaffordably high bail became a second path

定下高到無法負擔的保釋金

成了不讓被告在審判前 被釋放的第二種途徑。

to denying people pretrial release.

Judges' personal discretion and prejudices played a huge role

至於法官要不要 用這種方式來拘留被告，

有很大一部分取決於 法官的個人考量和偏見。

in who they chose to detain this way.

Bail amounts climbed higher and higher, and more and more defendants couldn’t pay—

保釋金金額越來越高，

越來越多被告無法支付——

so they stayed in jail.

所以他們留在監獄中。

By the late 19th century,

到了十九世紀末，

these circumstances led to the rise of commercial bail bond companies.

這種情況導致牟利的 保證保釋金公司的興起。

They pay a defendant’s bail, in exchange for a hefty fee the company keeps.

它們會幫被告支付保釋金， 交換條件是收取高額的手續費。

Today, the median bail is $10,000—

現今，保釋金的中位數 是一萬美金——

a prohibitively high price for almost half of Americans,

對近半的美國人而言 這個價格都高得嚇人，

and as many as nine out of ten defendants.

對高達九成的被告而言亦然。

If the defendant can’t pay,

如果被告付不起，

they may apply for a loan from a commercial bail bond company.

他們可以向牟利的保證保釋金公司貸款。

It’s completely up to the company to decide whose bail they’ll pay.

完全由公司自己決定 要幫誰支付保釋金。

They choose defendants they think will pay them back,

它們會選擇它們認為會還款的被告，

turning a profit of about $2 billion each year.

每年獲利約二十億美元。

In fact, in the past 20 years,

事實上，在過去二十年間，

pretrial detention has been the main driver of jail growth in America.

美國監禁人數增加的主要原因 就是審判前的拘留。

Every year, hundreds of thousands of people

每年有數十萬人 負擔不起保釋金、無法取得貸款，

who can’t afford bail or secure a loan stay in jail until their case is resolved.

得待監獄中等候他們的案件裁決。

This injustice disproportionately affects Americans who are Black and Latino,

這種不公平，對美國黑人 及拉丁裔的影響大到不成比例，

for whom judges often set higher bail

因為，針對同樣的犯罪，

法官對這些人定的保釋金 會比白人被告更高。

than for white people accused of the same offenses.

Unaffordable bail puts even innocent defendants in an impossible position.

高到無法負擔的保釋金， 甚至會讓無辜的被告陷入困境。

Some end up pleading guilty to crimes they did not commit.

有些明明沒有犯罪的人 最後卻認罪了。

For minor offenses, the prosecution may offer a deal that credits time

輕罪的情況下， 檢方可能會提出協議，

將已經待在監獄中的時間 從被告的刑期中扣除，

already spent in jail toward the accused’s sentence

if they plead guilty.

條件是被告要認罪。

Often, the time they’ve already spent in jail is the total length of the sentence,

通常，他們待在監獄中的時間 已經足以抵掉全部刑期，

and they can go home immediately— but they leave with a criminal record.

他們可以馬上回家—— 但會留下前科。

Defending their innocence, meanwhile,

想為自己的無辜辯護可能就表示

can mean staying in jail indefinitely awaiting trial—

在監獄中無止境地等候審判——

and doesn’t guarantee an innocent verdict.

且還不保證會被裁定是無辜的。

Bail may not even be necessary in the first place.

可能打從一開始就根本不需要保釋。

Washington, D.C. largely abolished cash bail in the 1990s.

九○年代時華盛頓 就已經大致廢除現金保釋了。

In 2017, the city released 94% of defendants without holding bail money,

2017 年，

該市釋放了 94% 的被告， 且沒有收取保釋金，

and 88% of them returned to all their court dates.

當中 88% 的人在每次 出庭日都有出席。

The nonprofit organization, The Bail Project,

非營利組織「保釋計畫」

provides free bail assistance to thousands of low-income people every year,

每年提供免費的保釋協助 給數千名低受入者，

removing the financial incentive that bail is designed to create.

讓設計保釋時希望能創造的 財務獎勵機作用不復存在，

The result? People come back to 90% of their court dates

結果呢？即使沒有任何錢的壓力，

without having any money on the line,

被告仍然有出席九成的出庭日，

and those who miss their court dates tended to

而沒有出席的通常是因為

because of circumstances like child care, work conflicts, or medical crises.

照顧孩子、工作衝突， 或醫療急事等狀況。

Studies have also found that holding people in jail before trial,

研究也發現，通常因為 被告無法負擔現金保釋金

often because they cannot afford cash bail,

而在審判前把被告關在監獄中，

actually increases the likelihood of rearrests and reoffending.

其實增加再次被捕和再犯的可能。

The damage of incarcerating people before their trials

在審判前監禁被告所造成的損害

extends to entire communities and can harm families for generations.

會波及整個族群， 且會傷害數世代的家人。

People who are incarcerated can lose their livelihoods, homes,

被監禁的人可能會失去 他們的生計、住家，

and access to essential services—

以及取得基礎服務的管道——

all before they’ve been convicted of a crime.

這些都發生在他們被定罪之前。

It’s also incredibly expensive:

這些代價也非常高昂：

American taxpayers spend nearly $14 billion every year

美國納稅人每年要花 近一百四十億美金

incarcerating people who are legally presumed innocent.

來監禁那些在法律上 應被假設為無辜的人。

This undermines the promise of equal justice under the law,

這個做法會動搖法律能確保平等正義

regardless of race or wealth.

不受種族或財富影響的保證。

The issues surrounding cash bail are symptomatic of societal problems,

現金保釋金相關的議題 是社會問題的症狀，

like structural racism and over-reliance on incarceration,

比如結構性種族主義 和過度仰賴監禁，

that need to be addressed.

這些問題都需要處理。

In the meantime, reformers like The Bail Project

同時，像保釋計畫這樣的改革者

are working to help people trapped by cash bail

正在努力協助受 現金保釋金所苦的人，

and to create a more just and humane pretrial system for the future.

並為未來創造出更公正、 更有人性的審前制度。