The New Hampshire House of Representatives recently voted on a bail reform bill that aims to make changes to the state’s bail system. The bill passed on Thursday and will now move to another House committee before heading to the state Senate. The legislation stems back to a 2018 overhaul of the bail system, which aimed to prevent poor individuals accused of low-level crimes from sitting in jail pretrial due to an inability to pay bail. The latest bill tightens the standard for determining when someone is deemed a danger to the public or a flight risk, giving judges more discretion to detain individuals pretrial. Supporters of the current system point to crime statistics showing a decline in violent and property crimes in recent years, suggesting that the 2018 bail law is working. However, opponents argue that there have been anecdotal cases of crimes committed by individuals out on bail, leading to a push for the current bill to make further changes to the system. Gov. Kelly Ayotte has been a vocal advocate for the bill, highlighting cases of defendants committing crimes while out on bail. The bill’s passage in the House reflects a more partisan divide, with Republicans leading the charge to pass the legislation. Despite this, the bill maintains the principle of protecting low-income defendants from being unfairly detained due to financial constraints.
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