Berkshire County District Attorney Andrea Harrington is moving her office away from cash bail.
Harrington, fulfilling a campaign promise, says cash bail contributes to the “criminalization of poverty” and leaves the financially vulnerable moldering in captivity.
“We have trained our prosecutors, our assistant district attorneys, that we have a presumption against requesting cash bail,” Harrington told WAMC.
The office’s new policy is to request cash bail only if the defendant in question meets enough criteria to be considered a flight risk or dangerous.
