Critics have complained that policy changes in the office of the Fairfax County, Virginia, Commonwealth’s Attorney have resulted in violent offenders being set free while facing charges. But Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano said that data tells a different story.
“The data shows that for people accused of violent felonies or sex crimes, we are recommending detention more than judges are actually holding these individuals; and for people accused of nonviolent crimes, we are recommending that people be released more than the judges are actually releasing them,” Descano said.
The Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office has posted a data dashboard on its website, which reviews the results of bond hearings in the first six months of the year — providing the judges’ decisions on holding or releasing defendants versus the recommendation of the prosecutors.
Bond hearings are the court proceedings in which judges decide whether defendants should be held for trial or released to later appear in court.
The dashboard indicates that prosecutors asked for detention in 76% of the cases of those charged with violent felonies, while judges agreed to detain 48%.
“The bottom line is that we are recommending that judges hold people that are a danger to our community, while we are recommending release for those who don’t represent a danger to our community. And that’s the true way to build long-lasting and broad public safety,” Descano said.
Two years ago, Descano ordered an end to prosecutors’ requests for cash bail, which swept into the detention numbers of nonviolent offenders who could not raise enough money to post the bail.
In July 2021, Descano’s office said that it was taking part in a three-year data collection and analysis program: “To help us root out disparities, whether it be racial, economic, or geographic, and continue to build a more fair and just criminal justice system in Fairfax.”
Descano said at the time that he wouldn’t be surprised if the data shows there are some disparities in Fairfax County.
