Source: (2004) Law and Contemporary Problems. 67(4): 59-86. Downloaded 11 March 2005.
Pretrial incarceration is the most punitive form of procedural punishment imposed by the lower courts. Specifically, its imposition primarily is caused by poverty, thus generating “punishment,” through confinement, on the basis of class rather than guilt. Furthermore, research indicates that pretrial detention can seriously distort the determination of guilt; those held in pretrial detention are significantly more likely to receive a guilty verdict than those who are released on bail or their own
recognizance. Scholars thus have identified the bail stage as a critical juncture in which programmatic changes should be explored as a way of increasing procedural justice. (excerpt)
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