> What is the alternative then? Let a probable criminal go wander the streets or disappear altogether? Grotesque inequities in the bail system are merely one s

> What is the alternative then? Let a probable criminal go wander the streets or disappear altogether? Grotesque inequities in the bail system are merely one symptom of the intractable disaster of criminal justice in America. This problem is tied to many other problems, you can't deal with them one at a time. But "letting someone go" is not as bad as it sounds. Keeping them in jail because they can't come up with a few hundred dollars from a predatory storefront bailbonds joint ALSO has problems. If that person had a job, they've now lost it. If they have children, they're now at risk of losing them, and the children face an even more chaotic home life. In addition to that, keeping someone locked up is costly to the state.