Dollars and Sense in Cook County
Examining the Impact of General Order 18.8A on Felony Bond Court Decisions, Pretrial Release, and Crime
In September, 2017, Cook County Chief Judge Timothy Evans issued General Order 18.8A (GO 18.8A) to reduce reliance on bail and to ensure a just, equitable, and efficient justice system. To lend an objective and independent review of these reforms, the Safety and Justice Challenge Research Consortium (Consortium) issued a Request for Work Proposals (RFWP) for researchers to assess the relationship between bond court reform and crime in Cook County, grounding local debates in a meaningful and robust analysis that addressed the limitations of prior analyses. Researchers from Loyola University’s Center for Criminal Justice Research, Policy, and Practice conducted the study and this report summarizes their findings, namely, that GO 18.8A significantly increased the number and rate of pre-trial releases in Cook County, reduced bail amounts for defendants where bail was still ordered, and had no effect on new criminal activity or crime. This is the first publication released from the Consortium. Launched in 2019, the Consortium advances criminal justice research to expand the field’s collective knowledge of how to safely reduce the overuse and misuse of jails and racial and ethnic disparities through fair and effective pretrial reforms. The Consortium is comprised of research organizations who develop and are granted projects under independent review by a panel of academic, policy, and practice experts, including individuals with lived experience. The Consortium is managed by the CUNY Institute for State and Local Governance and funded by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.