We don’t disagree with the idea of making sure local judges are properly using bail.

It’s unfair if people are in a county jail solely because they can’t scrape together minimum amounts of bail. Bail should be used as a means

But we think state lawmakers should act deliberately on any proposal that could end up impacting public safety. We think Rep. Tim Bonner, R-Grove City, has good intentions with House Resolution 519, but Republican lawmakers should be wary of unintended consequences from taking the first step toward bail reform that House Resolution 519 proposes.

Bonner wants the Pennsylvania Sentencing Commission to gather data from all 67 Pennsylvania counties and develop fair, consistent bail setting recommendations to assist courts across Pennsylvania. Bonner said a lack of uniform standards has led to significant inconsistencies in how bail is set across Pennsylvania’s 67 counties.

Pennsylvania is a state that explicitly factors community safety into bail decisions alongside the defendant’s risk of flight. Judges must consider whether a defendant poses a danger to the public, and if no condition of release can ensure safety, they can deny bail for certain offenses. That bit of protection does ensure what happened in New York state, where well-meaning bail reform became a public safety nightmare, doesn’t happen in Pennsylvania if lawmakers choose to tinker with bail.

But New York’s experience is worth noting as lawmakers consider Bonner’s proposal. The last thing anyone wants is a commission to review bail standards whose result is a legislative package that ends up with serial reoffenders released on no bail or bail that is too low. New York is a cautionary tale on how not to handle changes to bail statutes. We need to make sure Pennsylvania doesn’t follow in those footsteps.