California's SB 10 pretrial reform reversal (2018–2020)
California's legislature passed SB 10 in 2018, eliminating cash bail and replacing it with risk-based pretrial assessments. Law enforcement groups gathered signatures for a repeal referendum. Voters approved Proposition 25 in November 2020, upholding the law's repeal.
Cash bail remained in place across California, and pretrial service programs stayed dependent on county contracts and grants.
The episode showed how politically contested pretrial policy is — services like the ones this nonprofit provides can expand or contract sharply with each policy swing.
The funding and political environment for pretrial services in California has been unstable for years. This closure may reflect that broader volatility.
