The Bail Project is a national nonprofit organization designed to combat mass incarceration by disrupting the money bail system — one person at a time. We restore the presumption of innocence, reunite families, and challenge a system that criminalizes race and poverty. The Bail Project helps people in their darkest hour – bailing them out of jail and helping them navigate voluntary supportive services based on their needs as they await trial. At the same time, we work to take money out of the justice system by leveraging the power of data and human stories to advocate for holistic pretrial system reforms that reduce reliance on bail at the local, state, and federal levels.
We believe that paying bail for someone in need is an act of resistance against a system that criminalizes race and poverty and an act of solidarity with local communities and movements for decarceration. Over the next five years, The Bail Project will open dozens of sites in high-need jurisdictions with the goal of paying bail for tens of thousands of low-income Americans, all while collecting stories and data that prove money bail is not necessary to ensure people return to court. We won’t stop until meaningful change is achieved and the presumption of innocence is no longer for sale.