Category: Uncategorized

On 11/23/2020:

Judge Sampson presided.

16 people’s cases were heard (14 during the morning docket and 2 during the afternoon docket).

Based on the information available to us via Casesearch records, 15 (94%) are Black, 8 (50%) are under the age of 30.

The state asked for 9 people to be held without bail (“HWOB”) , agreed to private (paid) home detention for 2, agreed to ROR (release on recognizance) for 1, deferred or did not make an explicit demand for 3, and opposed a modification to a home detention order for 1. State’s HWOB percentage in the 15 cases where the defendant was seeking to be released from jail: 60%

Pretrial Services recommended HWOB for 4 people, private (paid) home detention for 5, ROR for 4, deferred or otherwise did not make a recommendation for 2, and recommended the court approve the modification of the home detention order mentioned above. Pretrial’s HWOB percentage: 27%

Judge Sampson ordered 5 people to be held without bail, released 5 to private (paid) home detention, ordered 4 ROR, postponed 1 case, and approved the modification to the home detention order mentioned above. In cases where the state made a demand on bail, Judge Sampson ruled in their favor 50% of the time. Judge Vittoria’s HWOB percentage: 33%

Our live thread from the 11/23/20 morning docket is here.

On 11/20/2020:

Judge Vittoria presided.

5 people’s cases were heard (all during the morning docket).

Based on the information available to us via Casesearch records, 5 (100%) are Black, 1 (20%) are under the age of 30.

The state asked for 4 people to be held without bail (“HWOB”) , and agreed to private (paid) home detention for 1. State’s HWOB percentage: 80%

Pretrial Services recommended HWOB for 1 person and private (paid) home detention for 4. Pretrial’s HWOB percentage: 20%

Judge Vittoria ordered 1 person to be held without bail, released 2 to private (paid) home detention, and ordered 2 ROR. In cases where the state demanded HWOB, Judge Vittoria ruled in their favor 25% of the time. Judge Vittoria’s HWOB percentage: 20%

Our live thread from the 11/20/20 morning docket is here.

In October, Baltimore Courtwatch observed 285 Bail Reviews.

Of those 285, 

• 39% (110) were granted home detention
• 38% (109) were held in no bail status
• 13% (36) were released to pretrial/probation/parole supervision
• 2% (7) were released on personal recognizance
• 7% (19) were postponed
• <1% (1) were released with a cash bail
• <1% (2) Sub Curia

Items heard in Bail Reviews:

BALT stopped paying home detention fees starting Nov. 1, 2020. Judges have stated multiple times that inability to pay should not be the reason for continuing incarceration, yet it is still happening. 

Det. Deonte Duck, who was identified in a previous bail hearing as having “credibility issues” — resulting in felony charges being dropped — continues to be listed in cases, most with charges and types of incidents similar to that case.

Marilyn Mosby’s office is prosecuting many cases without doing investigations, including citizen’s complaints against other citizens. In some cases, where further investigation was needed, they sent cops involved in the case.

COVID cases in MTC have sharply increased. Central Booking has a smaller but significant increase. 

Judge Vittoria scolded an OPD attorney for issues with the OPD antiquated phone messaging system.  Have heard thousands of bail review cases and this was the first time issues with this system have caused a problem. Judge Vittoria threatened to take away the option of home detention for OPD clients.

Multiple defense lawyers have brought up issues with Alert Home Detention company. Several asked for clients to be switched from Alert to ASAP due what was characterized as aggressive and racist communications from the owner. Alert also took a break from accepting new clients.

ASAP does not have a Spanish speaker on staff, nor do they hire interpreters. They have a large number of non-English-speaking clients. 

Baltimore SAO offices continue not to provide all SOPCs to judges and defense attorneys. 

Of the cases heard, the adult held longest with no trial has been held pretrial since June 4, 2019.

Regular medical care is not provided to the pretrial population. Services not happening that have been stated in bail hearings include wound care, post surgical care, diabetic care, pain management, and psychiatric medical care. 

Juveniles in jails are not being offered anything but emergency services. They are not getting regular medical, mental health, or education services. Regular medical care and specialized medical is spotty. Care described as not being provided includes regular blood sugar testing and proper diets for diabetics, and neurological testing or treatments for the onset of seizures.

On 10/14/2020:

Judge Vittoria presided.

21 people’s cases were heard (15 during the morning docket and 6 during the afternoon docket).

Based on the information available to us via Casesearch records, 16 (76%) are Black, 12 (57%) are under the age of 30.

The state asked for 11 people to be held without bail (“HWOB”) , agreed to private (paid) home detention for 7, agreed to ROR (release on recognizance) for 1, deferred to Pretrial Services for 1, and did not make a presentation in the final case of the day, which was just a defense postponement request. State’s HWOB percentage in the 20 cases where they presented: 55%

Pretrial Services recommended HWOB for 7 people, private (paid) home detention for 9, ROR for 4, and did not make a recommendation in the postponement mentioned above. Pretrial’s HWOB percentage: 35%

Judge Vittoria ordered 10 people to be held without bail, released 5 to private (paid) home detention, ordered 3 ROR, and postponed 2 cases, including the one mentioned above. In cases where the state made a demand on bail, Judge Vittoria acquiesced to those demands 63% of the time. Judge Vittoria’s HWOB percentage: 50%

Our live thread from the 10/14/20 morning docket is here.

On 10/13/2020:

Judge Dorsey presided.

12 people’s cases were heard (9 during the morning docket and 3 during the afternoon docket).

Based on the information available to us via Casesearch records, all 12 (100%) are Black, 6 (50%) are under the age of 30.

The state asked for 10 people to be held without bail (“HWOB”) , and agreed to home detention for 1 (the remaining person was placed back into a residential treatment facility without a presentation by the state). State’s HWOB percentage in the 11 cases where they presented: 91%

Pretrial Services recommended HWOB for 6 people, private (paid) home detention for 4, and did not make a recommendation in 2 cases. Pretrial’s HWOB percentage: 50%

Judge Dorsey ordered 10 to be held without bail, released 1 to private (paid) home detention, and allowed 1 to return to residential treatment. In cases where the state made a demand on bail, Judge Dorsey acquiesced to those demands 100% of the time. Judge Dorsey’s HWOB percentage: 83%

Our live thread from the 10/13/20 morning docket is here.