Columbus, OH – On Tuesday, The Buckeye Institute released its newest policy brief, Reforming Bail Reform, in which it urges the Ohio Supreme Court to rescind a last-minute change to Ohio’s new proposed bail rule (Criminal Rule 46) that threatens to “undermine the pro-liberty and pro-safety reforms” included in the original proposed rule.

“Ohio’s over-reliance on cash bail fails to keep our communities safe and perpetuates injustice in our criminal justice system,” Andrew J. Geisler, a visiting legal fellow at The Buckeye Institute’s Legal Center and the author of Reforming Bail Reform, wrote in urging the Ohio Supreme Court to rescind its last-minute change to Criminal Rule 46. “Unfortunately, an amended version of the rule…allows courts to also consider the seriousness of the defendant’s alleged offense and previous criminal record when imposing cash bail. Although this may seem to promote public safety, it actually will permit dangerous individuals to be released if they procure sufficient bail or bond.” 

In the brief, Geisler goes on to urge the General Assembly to “fix the current law that prevents judges from ordering pretrial detention without bail when justified,” and “make some serious third, fourth, and fifth-degree felonies, including certain aggravated assaults, certain drug-trafficking offenses, commercial sexual exploitation of a minor, and aggravated menacing eligible for no-bail hearings,” meaning the accused could be held in jail while awaiting trial. Geisler also urged the General Assembly to amend Ohio’s domestic violence offenses “so that accused offenders posing a threat to the public or a person may be charged with at least a fifth-degree felony,” which should also be eligible for a no-bail hearing. 

The Ohio Supreme Court’s deadline for filing additional amendments to Criminal Rule 46 is May 1. After May 1—absent action from the General Assembly—Criminal Rule 46 will take effect on July 1, 2020. 

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