Risk Assessment and Structured Decision-making for Pretrial Release: Implementation Lessons from Charleston County, South Carolina, and Lucas County, Ohio

By Jesse Jannetta and Marina Duane

Pretrial risk assessments are common tools for guiding pretrial release decisionmaking and have been adopted by many of the local jurisdictions. Risk assessment tools have been advanced as a promising alternative to the use of monetary conditions of release. However, as pretrial risk assessments have become more prevalent, they have also been subject to critiques about their potential for exacerbating inequities in the criminal legal system. This case study, part of a series highlighting work supported by the Safety and Justice Challenge, examines how Charleston County, South Carolina, and Lucas County, Ohio, implemented two different pretrial risk assessments and used them to inform pretrial decisions as part of their efforts to reduce the misuse of their jails.

Washington, DC: Urban Institute Justice Policy Center, 2022. 42p.