The campaign to overturn the law revamping the state’s bail system has gathered enough signatures to be placed on the November 2020 ballot, prompting a Santa Clarita expert to weigh in on the matter.

In August, California Senate Bill 10 was signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown.

Under the bill, people who are arrested on suspicion of criminal offenses can be held in jail only if they pose a significant risk to public safety or risk missing their court date, according to officials.

Right after its passage, the coalition Californians Against the Reckless Bail Scheme gathered signatures to overturn it.

The coalition had 90 days from the date the governor signed the bill to collect 365,880 valid signatures from registered voters in California. The actual number gathered was 576,813 in only 70 days, according to the American Bail Coalition.

“We knew with the momentum against this law from people on all sides of the issue, getting on the ballot would not be the problem. Now we can move on toward defeating this reckless law,” said Jeff Clayton, executive director of the American Bail Coalition.

Many have claimed that the cash bail system is unfair because it forces poor people to be stuck in jail, while those with financial means can “buy their way out,” according to American Bail Coalition officials.

“A lot of people think bail bond companies are bad, but we bring balance,” said Inessa Chavez, vice president of All American Bail Bonds in Santa Clarita.

SB 10 calls for the use of a controversial risk assessment tool to determine whether or not a person accused of a misdemeanor is to be detained or released. However, such tools have been shown to be inaccurate, according to officials.

In jurisdictions where this approach has been used, violent offenders have been declared “safe,” while other individuals with minor blemishes on their records have been deemed “high risk” and left in jail, according to officials.

“This is the biggest system in the country, and if people don’t realize how important it is, then many will be affected by it,” said Chavez.

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