Every day hundreds of thousands of legally innocent people sit in jail because they cannot afford bail.

The cash bail system astronomically favors the wealthy in our country. Despite the 8th amendment's stipulation that "excessive bail shall not be required," the national median felony bail is $10,000, an enormous sum when considering the average American has less than $400 on hand. 

Bail is currently in place to ensure defendants return to court for their trial.  Once a defendant appears for trial, the money is then returned. Most defendants who cannot afford bail use bail bonds to buy their freedom. These bonds come with nonrefundable premiums, meaning they are not repaid even after the bail money has been returned. This means those who cannot afford their own bail lose a portion of their already limited funds. The for-profit bail bond industry collects an annual revenue of more than $2 billion.

The burden of cash bail also falls disproportionately on people of color. One study found just being black increases your odds of being held on bail by 25%. Another study found that bail is set 35% higher for black men and 19% higher for Latino men than for white men.

Aside from the fact that cash bail is discriminatory and unequal, we must also consider the long term effects of holding legally innocent people in jail for long periods of time. Not only does this cost taxpayers money, but it also has a spiraling impact on the possibly innocent defendants. Spending time in jail can force them to lose their jobs, separate them from their families, and potentially have long-lasting effects. 

Instead of cash bail, other practices should be put in place that do not inherently discriminate and are not blatantly unequal. Defendants could instead be evaluated on a wholistic pre-trail assessment, and have other measures such as a GPS tracker or regular check-ins with officers, in place to guarantee they return for trial. 

Other states are already taking action to ban or work towards abolishing cash bail, and Missouri must take strides to do the same. We owe it to the thousands of Missourians detained every year to work towards a solution which does not discriminate based on wealth or race.