A new report from the Superior Court of Los Angeles County shows that replacing money bail with individualized risk assessments has improved public safety one year after implementation, according to data released Wednesday.
The report on the Pre-Arraignment Release Protocols (PARP) found that despite increasing the number of pre-arraignment releases for non-serious and non-violent crimes, there has been a 10% reduction in new criminal activity for individuals booked into custody compared to before PARP was implemented.
"One year after implementing the Pre-Arraignment Release Protocols, the data remains clear: having judges conduct individualized risk assessments for release decisions rather than relying on an arrested individual's ability to pay money bail has improved public safety," said Presiding Judge Sergio C. Tapia II in announcing the findings.
The court's analysis found that under PARP, low-risk individuals are more likely to be released before arraignment while those posing significant safety risks are temporarily held, regardless of financial resources.
"Under PARP, most individuals arrested for non-serious and non-violent crimes who pose a risk to public safety are temporarily held until arraignment," Tapia said. "Under the previous money bail system, high-risk individuals could secure their release from jail by paying money bail."
The report, prepared by the court's Management Research Unit, analyzed data from the Pre-arraignment Release Evaluation Program (PREP) comparing outcomes before and after PARP was implemented in October 2023.
Researchers found that despite concerns about increased releases leading to more crime, the opposite occurred. The per-booking rate of new criminal activity dropped from 15% under the previous system to 12% under PARP — a one-fifth reduction in the rate of reoffending.
This reduction occurred even as the average monthly releases increased from 2,590 to 2,843 under the new system.
"PARP has effectively replaced a wealth-based bail system with a new system that balances the need for public safety with the constitutional rights of the accused," said Executive Officer/Clerk of Court David W. Slayton.
The reform created a tiered system for handling arrests based on the severity of the alleged offense and an individual's risk assessment, rather than ability to pay bail.
Under PARP, individuals arrested for non-serious, non-violent offenses may receive a citation from law enforcement and be released immediately, be booked and fingerprinted before release, or have their case reviewed by a magistrate judge who conducts an individualized risk assessment.
The report indicates that magistrates are making data-informed decisions, with higher-risk individuals more likely to be held. The chance of being held until arraignment strongly correlates with an individual's risk score based on criminal history, circumstances of arrest, and likelihood of failing to appear in court.
Analysis shows a clear pattern: 57% of those with high risk scores for new criminal activity were held by magistrates, compared to just 21% of low-risk individuals.
The data also revealed that the new system hasn't led to fewer arrests, addressing one potential concern about the reform. Bookings with case filings actually increased under PARP, from an average of 3,673 per month previously to 4,073 per month.
The PARP system represents a significant shift in how Los Angeles County handles pretrial detention, moving away from a cash-based system that critics argued disproportionately affected lower-income defendants.
"The Court's move away from money bail, coupled with judicial decision-making, allowed newly arrested people to leave jail and return to their communities before their arraignment without compromising public safety," the report states.
The number of people held by magistrates decreased by 44% under the new system, dropping from 3,206 to 1,790. This occurred even though those now being reviewed by magistrates likely present higher risks than before, as many lower-risk cases no longer require judicial review.
One consistent finding across both systems was that about 40% of all bookings remain ineligible for pre-arraignment release due to serious and violent charges, indicating that the most serious offenses are handled the same way regardless of the bail regime.
This reform follows a May 2023 court injunction in the case of Urquidi v. City of Los Angeles that prevented the Los Angeles Police Department and Sheriff's Department from demanding cash bail for low-level offenses. The court subsequently developed broader rules applying to all law enforcement agencies in the county that took effect in October 2023.
The court's implementation of PARP followed a pilot program established in 2020 by the Governor, Legislature and Judicial Council of California called the Pre-arraignment Release Evaluation Program (PREP), which created a process for magistrate review of booked individuals before arraignment.
Prior to this pilot program, pre-arraignment release decisions were rare, typically only available upon request to the Probation Department.
Under the current system, serious and violent felonies such as murder, rape, robbery, and drug trafficking remain subject to the traditional money bail system due to statutory restrictions. These offenses account for approximately 40% of all bookings in the county.
The most serious alleged offenders can still secure release if they have financial resources, which the court notes is due to statutory mandates: "a person arrested for a serious and violent offense can continue to buy their way to freedom if they have access to money."
Local law enforcement agencies prepared for the change in advance of the October 2023 implementation. According to information from the Santa Monica Police Department, the reform significantly changed protocols for law enforcement, with most suspects now eligible for cite-and-release or book-and-release processing.
The report concludes that "a radical new approach to bail, coupled with data-informed judicial decision making, has accomplished" the difficult feat of increasing the number of people who can leave jail before trial while maintaining or improving public safety.
"Increasing the number of newly arrested people who can leave jail to continue their lives – without compromising public safety – seems a tall order," the report states. "But a radical new approach to bail, coupled with data-informed judicial decision making, has accomplished that in Los Angeles County."
The court maintains a real-time PARP Data Dashboard on its website for the public to monitor the program's ongoing performance.
