TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Jarod Word on Apr 13, 2021

Attorneys with the Southern Poverty Law Center and the Civil Rights Corps have threatened to sue Knox County over its pretrial bail practices, the Knoxville News Sentinel reports. In a letter sent to county officials, the organizations say they will file a lawsuit if the municipality's judges continue using pretrial monetary bonds to secure release of accused criminals, arguing it is a violation of their constitutional rights and tantamount to jailing those who are "unable to purchase their freedom.” The nonprofits recently won a similar suit in Hamblen County where a judge was ordered to cease the practice. Knox County’s five General Sessions judges have issued a statement regarding the lawsuit, saying “All of the Knox County sessions judges are committed to protecting the constitutional and statutory rights of every person who is accused at every stage of the criminal justice process, as well as victims and witnesses … We have and will continue to examine and re-examine our processes to ensure that we handle bonding matters (and every matter) in a way that is fair and just under the law.”