Opposing the Elimination of Cash Bail

Floor Speech

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Mr. CLINE. Madam Speaker, increasingly across this Nation and here in Washington, the voices of victims are being drowned out by radicals on the left seeking to eliminate cash bail. These people would rather see criminals walk free on our streets than see the rule of law upheld and our communities protected.

Without appropriate incentives to appear before the court, we run the risk of defendants fleeing justice while victims and their families are left with nothing but fear and anguish.

We cannot allow our system to fail them as it did in Waukesha, Wisconsin. Prior to plowing into a Christmas parade, convicted felon and career criminal, Darrell Brooks, was released on an inappropriately low $1,000 bond after being arrested on a slew of charges. That is astonishing to me. With his record, Mr. Brooks' bail should have never been so low, if awarded at all.

So the next time my colleagues across the aisle suggest eliminating the cash bail system, I ask them to think of this tragedy and of the victims. Our bail system keeps criminals off the streets and our communities safe.

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