On any given day, over 60 percent of people in jail in California are awaiting trial or sentencing, and many remain detained simply because they cannot afford to post money bail. The results can be devastating. Individuals who spend even a few days... Read more »
Economic Justice
The ACLU works to defend economically disadvantaged people and fights income-based discrimination in the criminal justice and public benefits systems, and in housing and employment. Economic justice is a civil right.
Publication
Events
July 7, 2017 - 7:00pm
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Join the ACLU in Davis, CA on Friday, July 7 at 7 p.m. for a free film screening and discussion on money bail and what we can do to replace the broken system in California. Read more
News
June 2, 2017
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The CA Assembly failed to approve AB 42, a bill to reform California’s money bail system. The defeat came on the heels of the Senate’s bipartisan approval of an identical measure, SB 10, which now heads to the Assembly for consideration. Read more
Legislation
Every year in California, thousands and thousands of people are jailed while they await their trial simply because they can’t afford to post bail. In a state where the median bail amount is $50,000, it’s no surprise that many people simply can’t afford to buy their freedom in this broken system. AB... Read more »
News
May 31, 2017
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The California Senate approved SB 10, a bill to reform and modernize California’s money bail system, on a bipartisan 25-11 vote. An identical bail reform bill, AB 42, is expected to be voted on by the Assembly later this week. Read more
Blog
May 22, 2017
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Jails have become America's top place to warehouse people living with mental health challenges. Far too many of those incarcerated are locked up for low-level offenses related to their health condition. Read more »
News
May 11, 2017
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Today, Color Of Change and the American Civil Liberties Union ’s Campaign for Smart Justice released a scathing national report exposing insurance corporations’ hand in creating an unnecessary and largely unaccountable $2 billion bail industry. Read more
Blog
May 11, 2017
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Every year, money bail boosts bail insurance corporations’ profits at the expense of millions of low-income people of color. Read more »
Blog
May 9, 2017
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“On behalf of myself and my 17-year-old daughter that I’m raising and my mother, who recently passed away – we’ve been drinking contaminated water for some time now. I live on a fixed budget. I don’t make more than $600 a month, and I pay out about... Read more »
Blog
April 10, 2017
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No one should have to turn on their tap and wonder if the water is safe to drink. But t housands of homes across the state are connected to water sources contaminated with a cancer-causing chemical called 1,2,3-TCP. Read more »