The bail bond industry thought it pulled the plug on legislation dramatically changing the criminal justice system and money bail during summer hearings.
Bail agents captured lawmakers’ attention by putting a human face on the industry, while victim advocates reinforced the need to keep some defendants in jail because of the danger they could pose before going to court.
Some said they feared Tennessee would start no-bail or low-bail programs that are taking shape in the nation’s largest cities.
Despite the summer setback, Sen. Ferrell Haile is continuing to gather information in a series of statewide meetings focusing on bail reform to bring his bills before the Tennessee General Assembly again in 2022.
The pieces of legislation he proposed earlier this year, Senate Bill 804 and Senate Bill 805, “are really just skeletons,” said Haile, who has held 10 meetings across the state and seen different issues arise at each one.