WASHINGTON, D.C.—In a significant move to reportedly push crime-fighting to the forefront of his administration’s agenda, President Donald Trump recently signed an executive order at the White House that seeks to end the practice of cashless bail across the United States.
The order also includes a provision that would threaten to revoke federal funding from states and local jurisdictions that continue to implement cashless or low-cash bail policies.
“Our great law enforcement officers risk their lives to arrest potentially violent criminals, only to be forced to arrest the same individuals, sometimes for the same crimes, while they await trial on the previous charges,” the executive order read. “This is a waste of public resources and a threat to public safety.”
The executive order requires Attorney General Pam Bondi to identify local and state jurisdictions that have eliminated cash bail for defendants accused of crimes posing a threat to public safety. Jurisdictions identified will face potential suspension or termination of federal funding.
In Washington, D.C., where cashless bail has been a longstanding practice, the order instructs federal law enforcement, through the D.C. Safe and Beautiful Task Force, to assume custody of arrested suspects whenever feasible under the law, and to pursue federal charges aimed at pretrial detention.
The president also signed a more specific order related to cashless bail in Washington, D.C., where he declared a “crime emergency.” The order’s goal is to keep as many criminal defendants in federal custody as possible, pursuing federal charges and pretrial detention “whenever possible, consistent with applicable law.”
Since the colonial era, cash bail has been an integral component of the U.S. criminal justice system, originating from English common law, to ensure that defendants appear in court. However, by the mid-20th century, critics argued that it had deviated from its initial purpose, functioning more as a penalty for those in poverty rather than a protective measure.
D.C. was an early adopter in 1992 and now primarily relies on judges’ assessments of whether a defendant poses a threat to public safety or might flee when determining pretrial release. Supporters argue that this approach advances fairness by preventing detention solely due to an inability to pay bail.
By the early 2000s, increasing attention to mass incarceration and racial disparities encouraged new reform efforts. New Jersey’s 2017 bail reform greatly reduced the use of cash bail, replacing it with risk assessments. Illinois became the first state to eliminate cash bail in 2023 through its SAFE-T Act, a reform upheld by the state’s Supreme Court.
While cashless bail may seem fair, Chicago Attorney Hakeem Muhammad highlights its challenges. He told The Final Call, “Cashless bill does not mean everyone who is accused of a crime automatically gets out of jail pending trial. The court system applies a legal standard to determine whether the person is a danger to society.
The judge will hear evidence, including the person’s likelihood of committing another crime while released and their criminal record. Then the attorneys from both sides will argue whether or not the person is a threat to the safety of society.
“If, after hearing both sides, the judge determines that there are no conditions that will ensure the safety of the community, the person can still be detained in a cashless system pending a trial.
My concern is the same racism that once resulted in judges setting Black defendants with high bail, is the same racism that can result in a judge just detaining someone, saying that they were a threat to society.
There’s no way other than a legal argument that that ruling can be overturned. At least in a system where you had a high bail, there’s some hope, if you come up with X amount of money, the person can come out.”
Opponents of the new executive order were swift to condemn it. The ACLU’s Cynthia Roseberry, director of policy and government affairs, explained in a statement, “To further his dangerous, performative abuse of power in D.C.,
President Trump today took another step to make people in our nation’s capital less safe by targeting common sense bail reforms. These executive orders are another blatant power grab by the Trump administration that will only serve to benefit the predatory bail industry.
But the people who will be most impacted are those with the fewest resources. Whether we can afford to pay should never determine our freedom.”