President Donald Trump signed an executive order on August 25, 2025, directing federal agencies to withhold funding from jurisdictions that have eliminated or substantially reduced the use of cash bail for certain crimes.
The executive order requires Attorney General Pam Bondi to compile within 30 days a list of states and local jurisdictions that have “substantially eliminated cash bail as a potential condition of pretrial release from custody for crimes that pose a clear threat to public safety and order”. These crimes specifically include “offenses involving violent, sexual, or indecent acts, or burglary, looting, or vandalism.”
Federal agencies are then instructed to identify grants and contracts provided to these jurisdictions that may be suspended or terminated. Trump claimed during the signing ceremony that cashless bail policies allow dangerous individuals to be “released quickly, endangering residents, visitors, and Federal workers.”
According to recent data, only four jurisdictions have completely eliminated cash bail: the District of Columbia, Illinois, New Jersey, New York and New Mexico. Several other states have implemented significant restrictions on cash bail use: Washington DC.
Multiple comprehensive studies have found no evidence linking bail reform to increased crime rates. The Brennan Center for Justice conducted one of the most extensive analyses, examining 33 cities and finding “no statistically significant relationship between bail reforms and trends in crime generally or violent crime specifically.”
Illinois Data: One year after eliminating cash bail, Illinois has not experienced the predicted crime surge. According to research from Loyola University Chicago’s Center for Criminal Justice, violent crime and property crime have actually decreased. Court appearance rates have remained stable at approximately 85%, and only 36% of detention-eligible defendants are being held pretrial.
New Jersey Results: Following its 2017 reform, New Jersey saw a 40% reduction in pretrial jail population while violent crime decreased by 20% from 2017-2020. Rearrest rates for serious offenses remained low at 1.2% as of 2020. The state saved $68 million in 2018 alone from reduced jail populations.
Washington D.C. Statistics: Despite being a specific target of Trump’s orders, D.C.’s Criminal Justice Coordinating Council found that only 3% of defendants on pretrial release were rearrested between August 2024 and January 2025, with none rearrested for violent crimes. Overall crime rates in the city have reportedly decreased by 26% compared to the previous year.
Firearm Violence Research: A peer-reviewed study published in JAMA Network found no significant change in firearm mortality or shooting rates in New Jersey during the three years following bail reform implementation.
The executive order represents part of Trump’s broader strategy to federalize crime policy and pressure Democratic-led jurisdictions to adopt his preferred policies. The administration has simultaneously deployed National Guard troops in Washington D.C. and threatened similar interventions in other cities.
The order comes as Trump seeks to make crime a central issue ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. However, national crime data shows mixed trends that don’t clearly support claims that bail reform has driven overall crime increases.
