On Monday, the Superior Court of Alameda County, in collaboration with Building Opportunities for Self-Sufficiency, or BOSS, and the Alameda County Probation Department, expanded the Pretrial Services Program, which provides defendants awaiting trial with case workers and access to vital services in order to avoid rearrest.
The expanded program will hire 12 new positions — including case managers, supervisors and intake coordinators — to support defendants while navigating the conditions of the pretrial period. It will also include additional funding for program services and resources that help defendants meet the pretrial requirements determined by a judge.
Anyone with a pending criminal case is eligible for the pretrial services. The program currently runs out of three service centers, which are located at the René C. Davidson Courthouse, Wiley W. Manuel Courthouse and the East County Hall of Justice. Depending on the severity of the case, individuals will be referred to a caseworker.
The centers provide resources that “emphasize stability,” according to a press release from the Superior Court of Alameda County. This includes housing, employment, mental health resources, substance abuse treatment, anger management programs and parenting classes. The services provided are free for defendants.
“This is going to be very exciting because now you will have judges, district attorneys, public defenders, the probation department, and community organizations all working in conjunction with each other to be part of the solution,” said Nichole Pettway, deputy director at BOSS, in a press release. “It’s important for anyone released on pretrial to have a community that embraces them and buys into the notion that people can change.”
According to Cory Jacobs, who leads the Superior Court of Alameda County’s pretrial services unit, these services within the county have been around for decades. However, she said that previously, the services mostly relied on supervising defendants and probationary measures.
Since 2022, she said she has been a part of a “very intentional” process of adapting the Pretrial Services Program to focus more on establishing connections and resources that help defendants.
“We realized there needed to be more support in the community, and worked to facilitate that process,” Jacobs said.
The program also aims to help reduce taxpayer money spent on rearrests. Jacobs says that recidivism is “incredibly expensive,” and that a program such as the Pretrial Services Program could help save millions.
The program expansion was funded by a one-time, $3 million expenditure from Alameda County, according to Jacobs. She said the county would be reassessing the funding this summer with the results from the first six months of the expansion.
According to the press release, the Court hopes the program will show “real-world results” that make a “compelling case” for the county to approve additional funding to keep the program active.
“We’ve seen it over and over again — if you don’t provide the services, you’ll likely to see a defendant in your courtroom again,” Presiding Judge Michael Markman said in the press release. “Recidivism is far more expensive than providing basic services to those in need.”