In the United States, a pretrial services report is a document used by a judicial officer, typically a magistrate, in making decisions, e.g., about bail. In 2016, federal officers prepared 88,248 pretrial services reports, 97 percent of which were pre-bail reports. Typically the report must be prepared within a very limited timeframe due to the deadlines for making bail decisions.
To gather information for the report, the officer interviews the defendant. The report will contain defendant case information, such as residence, family ties, employment history, financial resources, health (including mental health and substance abuse histories), and criminal history. The officer then performs a criminal record check, pursues investigative leads, and verifies information which the defendant has provided, such as address, employment, assets, and citizenship.
On the basis of this information, the report will assess the defendant's likelihood of appearing for court and the level of danger he poses to the community. The last section of the report recommends for the release or detention of the defendant.
References
- "Pretrial Services - Judicial Business 2016". U&scourts.gov. Retrieved 24 January 2019.
The number of cases opened in the pretrial services system, including pretrial diversion cases, equaled 91,709, a decrease of 3 percent from 2015
- "Pretrial Detention in the Ninth Circuit". San Diego L. Rev. 35 (993). 1998.
- Cadigan, Timothy P.; Johnson, James L.; Lowenkamp, Christopher T. (September 2012). "The revalidation of the federal pretrial services risk assessment (PTRA). (30th Anniversary of the Pretrial Services Act of 1982)". Federal Probation. 76 (2): 3–9.
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