The Alabama State Bureau of Investigations has recently hired you. You received a complaint from the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) that the Madison County Circuit Court violates the United States Alabama Constitution. The SPLC claims they have reached out to Judge Maria Impartial, and she has agreed to stop requiring bonds for criminal defendants pending their appearance in the trial. The SPLC view is that poor people disproportionately arrested and charged with crimes are being held for lengthy periods before having their official day in court. Given that they are assumed innocent until proven guilty, the requirement of a bond for these poor individuals, in essence, means that they are required to start serving a jail sentence before their actual conviction.
The Alabama State Bureau of Investigations has recently hired you. You received a complaint from the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) that the Madison County Circuit Court violates the United States Alabama Constitution. The SPLC claims they have reached out to Judge Maria Impartial, and she has agreed to stop requiring bonds for criminal defendants … Read more