Michigan Gov. Whitmer Signs Bills Prioritizing Jail Alternatives

MICHIGAN — Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Monday signed a package of bipartisan jail reform bills that prioritize alternatives to jail, expand officer discretion to issue tickets rather than make arrests and reshape traffic offense penalties.

The package included 20 bills in all and passed with overwhelming support prior to making it to Whitmer's desk. The bills are based on policy recommendations from the Michigan Joint Task Force on Jail and Pretrial Incarceration, which conducted a year-long study of the state's jail.

“Our courts and justice system belong to the people, and these reforms reflect a consensus-based process that brought together all who share our commitment to fairness, accountability, transparency, and efficiency,” Supreme Court Chief Justice Bridget McCormack, who led the task force, said. “We have more work to do to continue making Michigan even safer, but we are now a national leader in implementing criminal justice reform that is data-driven, informed by research, responsive to community input, and committed to building public trust.”

The Task Force found that low-level infractions, such as driving on a suspended license, violations of probation and other misdemeanors, were exhausting public safety resources and impacting hundreds of thousands of Michiganders each year without producing safer communities.

Meanwhile, jail populations had tripled in less than 40 years, growing particularly fast in rural communities, according to Whitmer's office. Michigan law provided little to no guidance on when jail alternatives should be the preferred or presumed intervention.

The bills passed by the legislature aims to shift people away from jail unless they pose a threat to public safety. Throughout the last year, the bills were vetted by lawmakers and refined with input from prosecutors, judges, sheriffs, crime victims, reform advocates and the public.

The Task Force started working in July 2019 on measures the state could take to reduce jail populations and expand alternatives to incarceration.

“As a former prosecutor, I recognize how critical it is to take steps toward a smarter and more equitable justice system that not only saves taxpayer money but keeps people in their communities,” Whitmer said.