‘Two-tiered justice system’: Trump attacks cashless bail after paying $175 million to walk free while poor people rot in jail

President Donald Trump signed executive orders on Monday to end cashless bail policies across the country, threatening to cut federal funding to cities and states that have these programs. The orders target Washington, D.C., and other places that let people await trial without paying money up front.

Trump plans to have Attorney General Pam Bondi make a list of places with cashless bail policies within 30 days. Those places could lose federal grants and contracts. The president called cashless bail a “disaster” and blamed it for crime problems.

The timing of Trump’s attack on cashless bail creates what critics call a two-tiered justice system. According to MSNBC, Trump himself paid $175 million in bond last year to walk free during his civil fraud case, showing how wealthy people can buy their freedom while poor defendants stay in jail. About 40% of Americans cannot afford a $400 emergency, yet the average felony bail is $10,000. More than 60% of jail populations are behind bars simply because they cannot pay bail.

Research shows bail reform does not increase crime

Multiple studies have found no clear evidence that bail reform increases crime rates. A major study by the Brennan Center for Justice looked at 33 cities and found no connection between bail reform and crime increases. The research examined crime data from 2015 to 2021, comparing cities that changed their bail policies with those that did not.

Illinois became the first state to completely eliminate cash bail in September 2023. One year later, early research shows crime did not go up in Illinois after ending cash bail. Violent crime fell 7.59% and property crime dropped 14.6% statewide. Court appearance rates also improved by 2% in Illinois after the change.

The Trump administration cited a 2023 study from California’s Yolo County that found higher reoffense rates under zero bail policies during COVID-19. However, Trump’s crime crackdown approach has faced pushback from experts who point to broader research showing different results. Studies in New Jersey, New York, and Washington, D.C. found that 99% of people released without bail completed their pretrial period without serious new arrests.

Critics say Trump’s orders will force a return to a system where wealth, not public safety, determines who stays in jail. The current president has already taken control of Washington D.C.’s police force and deployed National Guard troops to the capital city as part of his broader crime agenda.