General Assembly Raised Bill No. 1031
January Session, 2015 LCO No. 4385
*04385_______JUD*
Referred to Committee on JUDICIARY
Introduced by:
(JUD)
General Assembly
Raised Bill No. 1031
January Session, 2015
LCO No. 4385
*04385_______JUD*
Referred to Committee on JUDICIARY
Introduced by:
(JUD)
AN ACT CONCERNING BAIL AMOUNTS SET BY JUDGES.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:
Section 1. Subsection (a) of section 54-64a of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2015):
(a) (1) Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, when any arrested person is presented before the Superior Court, said court shall, in bailable offenses, promptly order the release of such person upon the first of the following conditions of release found sufficient to reasonably ensure the appearance of the arrested person in court: (A) Upon his execution of a written promise to appear without special conditions, (B) upon his execution of a written promise to appear with nonfinancial conditions, (C) upon his execution of a bond without surety in no greater amount than necessary, (D) upon his execution of a bond with surety in no greater amount than necessary, provided in the case of a person charged with no crime other than a misdemeanor, such amount shall not exceed five thousand dollars, unless the court finds good cause to set such amount higher. In addition to or in conjunction with any of the conditions enumerated in subparagraphs (A) to (D), inclusive, of this subdivision the court may, when it has reason to believe that the person is drug-dependent and where necessary, reasonable and appropriate, order the person to submit to a urinalysis drug test and to participate in a program of periodic drug testing and treatment. The results of any such drug test shall not be admissible in any criminal proceeding concerning such person.
(2) The court may, in determining what conditions of release will reasonably ensure the appearance of the arrested person in court, consider the following factors: (A) The nature and circumstances of the offense, (B) such person's record of previous convictions, (C) such person's past record of appearance in court after being admitted to bail, (D) such person's family ties, (E) such person's employment record, (F) such person's financial resources, character and mental condition, and (G) such person's community ties.
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
Section 1 October 1, 2015 54-64a(a)
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
Section 1
October 1, 2015
54-64a(a)
Statement of Purpose:
To ensure that bail is not abused and that an accused person's ability to assist in the preparation of his or her defense is not unnecessarily interfered with.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not underlined.]