The Bronx Freedom Fund
The Bronx Freedom Fund is a nonprofit bail fund located in the South Bronx.[1] The first charitable bail organization in New York State,[2] it provides bail assistance to indigent defendants facing pretrial detention for low-level and misdemeanor charges.[3] It was founded by David Feige, a producer, writer, and law professor, and Robin Steinberg, the founder and chief executive of The Bronx Defenders.[2] Its first grant came from the CEO of Lava Records, Jason Flom, and the Flom Family Foundation.[4]
The Bronx Freedom Fund bailed out nearly 200 people from 2007 to 2009. It closed its doors in 2009 after Judge Ralph Fabrizio ruled that it was an uninsured bail-bond business.[5] Its co-founders, along with state senator Gustavo Rivera and then-assemblymen Phil Boyle, drafted a set of amendments allowing for a charitable exemption to the bail and insurance laws.[6] The bill, sponsored by Senator Rivera, passed unanimously through both chambers of the state legislature in 2011. It was vetoed by Governor Andrew Cuomo, and a revised bill passed in 2012.[7] The Bronx Freedom Fund reopened its doors and bailed out approximately 300 people from 2013 to 2015.[8]
In 2015, The Bronx Freedom Fund won the National Criminal Justice Association's Outstanding Criminal Justice Program Award for the Northeast Region.[9]
References
- ^ Williams, Jaime (28 February 2015). "Borough's charitable bail fund touts success". The Bronx Times. Retrieved 19 February 2016.
- ^ a b Turkewitz, Julie (22 January 2014). "Helping Poor Defendants Post Bail in Backlogged Bronx". New York Times. Retrieved 19 February 2016.
- ^ Ewing, Maura (3 September 2015). "Punished for Being Poor". Retrieved 19 February 2016 – via The Pacific Standard.
- ^ "An Interview with Lava Records CEO, Jason Flom". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 2016-02-19.
- ^ "People v Miranda". Justia Law. Retrieved 2016-02-19.
- ^ "Bills". assembly.state.ny.us. Retrieved 2016-02-19.
- ^ Pinto, Nick. "Making Bail Better". Village Voice. Retrieved 2016-02-19.
- ^ "2015 Annual Report" (PDF). The Bronx Freedom Fund. Retrieved 19 February 2016.
- ^ "Outstanding Criminal Justice Program Awards: Past Winners". National Criminal Justice Association. Retrieved 19 February 2016.