Harris’ campaign has said she continues to support abolishing cash bail and bail reform as the vice president and former prosecutor faces intense scrutiny for her past policies and positions on crime and law enforcement.
“Vice President Harris believes our criminal justice system should protect and serve all Americans, regardless of economic status, gender or race,” Harris campaign spokesman James Singer told Fox News Digital.
“On the issue of bail, she believes we need a system where public safety, not wealth, determines who should remain in jail after an arrest. Anyone who poses a danger to society should be locked up, regardless of how much money they have,” Singer said.
Harris’ positions on bail have changed over the course of her public career as San Francisco district attorney, California attorney general and U.S. senator.
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Democratic presidential candidate and US Vice President Kamala Harris arrives at Philadelphia International Airport for a campaign event at Girard College in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on August 6, 2024. (Andrew Harnick/Getty Images)
During her unsuccessful presidential run in 2019, Harris was a bit more forceful in her stance.
“Abolish bail. Our bail system is unjust and broken,” Harris said in a Medium post.
“Today, 450,000 Americans are in jail awaiting trial because they cannot afford bail. When bail amounts are too high, they disproportionately harm low-income people and communities of color,” she said.
“Black defendants are more likely to be detained pretrial and less likely to be able to afford bail than similarly situated white defendants, and Black men also pay higher bail amounts than similarly situated white defendants,” she continued.
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Democratic presidential candidate U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris speaks as Democratic vice presidential candidate Minnesota Governor Tim Walz looks on during a campaign event at Girard College in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on August 6, 2024. (Andrew Harnick/Getty Images)
But in 2004, she said one of her top priorities during her first 100 days as district attorney would be to increase bail amounts. The Washington Free Beacon reported.
“Every day, the work I have to do and the priorities I have to keep in mind, like sitting down with Russ and talking about it. [Guintini] “I’ve been talking to my chief deputy attorney, and we’re talking about changing the bail schedule in San Francisco,” Harris said in an interview. “We’re asking the courts, the law enforcement community to reevaluate the fact that we’re asking people who are arrested to set bail amounts that are much less than other counties.”
She also commented that people are coming to San Francisco because “it’s cheaper to commit crime.”
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Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris arrives to speak at a campaign rally, Saturday, Aug. 10, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Julia Nickinson)
“We have to do something about it,” she said. “That’s what I’m spending my time on.”
In late 2014, while she was Attorney General, her office opposed the release of nonviolent offenders, citing a desire to hold them as cheap labor. The Washington Examiner reported.
“Applying a 2-to-1 reduction to all inmates currently serving minimum sentences would severely impact their ability to attend fire camp, a dangerous outcome as California is in the midst of a severe fire season and severe drought,” attorneys from Harris Law Firm wrote in the filing.
Eliminating bail is generally considered a progressive approach to criminal justice, but states like New York have implemented such reforms and data shows that eliminating bail can lead to higher recidivism rates.
“Abolishing bail will Recidivism rates decreased for people charged with nonviolent felonies, those with a recent criminal history, and those recently arrested for a violent felony, but recidivism rates decreased for people charged with misdemeanors and those with no recent criminal history.”
Ms Harris’ critics say she has a tendency to shift positions on controversial policies depending on whether it is politically advantageous to do so.
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A former public safety official who criticized Ms Harris’ role as a defender of California’s notorious crime laws said her purported ability to fight drug and violent crime was “pompous and hollow.”
“That’s really her belief: She doesn’t want to run for office because she doesn’t know what the impact will be on her future,” the former administration official told Fox News Digital.
Meanwhile, the Trump campaign has described abolishing bail as a “catastrophe.”
“Abolishing bail would be a disaster for public safety and would allow more violent criminals to return to our streets and cause more mayhem,” spokesperson Caroline Leavitt told Fox News Digital. “Cities and states with dangerously liberal prosecutors like Kamala Harris see skyrocketing crime and a deterioration in daily life, all because of a tamperable justice system created by these radical leftist policies. Kamala Harris is a dangerously liberal hypocrite, and only President Trump and J.D. Vance can clean up our streets and make America safe again.”
