“Pre-trial Detention in Maryland Due for Reform”

Many citizens who pose no threat to society spend prolonged periods in prisons awaiting trial without seeing a judge, particularly those who cannot afford bail. Excessive use of pretrial detention is destructive to families and may increase costs of criminal justice systems as a whole. Innovative reform proposals will be a hot topic in the Maryland General Assembly this year.

Tara Andrews Huffman, Esq. is the Director of the Criminal and Juvenile Justice Program, Open Society Institute-Baltimore. Previously, Huffman provided coaching and consulting services to non-profit leaders and organizations—including to the Greater Baltimore Grassroots Criminal Justice Network. Before that, she served for five years as the Deputy Director for Policy and Programs at the Coalition for Juvenile Justice in Washington, D.C. There, she managed a project to advocate for national standards to reduce incarceration and criminalization of juvenile status offenders. Active in the community, Huffman has a deep commitment to reforming policies and practices that contribute to racial disparities, an over-reliance on incarceration, blocked opportunities, and unrealized potential.