Pretrial Release Task Force

The mission of this Task Force is to understand how various Judicial Branch stakeholders and court-involved professions interact with pretrial release laws, develop model policies for pretrial release for Judicial Branch stakeholders, and to educate Judicial Branch stakeholders on the law of pretrial release.

The Pretrial Release Task Force is charged with the following tasks:

1. survey and assess our current practice and procedure regarding pretrial release among the various North Carolina jurisdictions, including any local policies;
2. evaluate whether these practices and procedures comply with N.C.G.S. § 15A- 534 and other relevant statutory provisions;
3. compare the current statutory framework for pretrial release decision making with the twin priorities of public safety and the protection of victims and consider whether the current framework adequately protects the public;
4. evaluate whether these practices and procedures adequately balance the need for judicial discretion with the need for consistency in decision making;
5. produce a guide that outlines the best practices for pretrial release to assist Judicial Branch stakeholders; and
6. if needed, make recommendations for legislative consideration to reform the practice and procedure of pretrial release.

This draft, Model Pretrial Release Policy was created by the Pretrial Release Task Force. Per G.S. 15A-535, local pretrial release policies are devised and issued under the authority of the senior resident superior court judge for each district or set of districts in consultation with the relevant chief district court judge(s).

Model Pretrial Release Policy (Draft)

The Task Force was created by North Carolina Supreme Court Chief Justice Paul Newby and its members are appointed by North Carolina Supreme Court Associate Justice, and Co-Chair of this Task Force, Phil Berger, Jr.

Task Force members are representative of stakeholder groups within our court system: judges, prosecutors, defense attorneys, magistrates, law enforcement, bail bondsmen, and child-representatives.

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