Latest news with #Bianco
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
FDA Removes Partial Clinical Hold on TuHURA Biosciences' Phase 3 Accelerated Approval Trial for IFx-2.0 in Advanced or Metastatic Merkel Cell Carcinoma
Company anticipates initiating its Phase 3 accelerated approval trial of IFx-Hu2.0 as adjunctive therapy with Keytruda® (pembrolizumab) as first-line treatment for advanced and metastatic Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC), conducted under Special Protocol Assessment (SPA) Agreement with U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), later in June 2025 Resolution of partial clinical hold unlocks second tranche of funds from $12.5 million PIPE financing announced on June 3, 2025 TAMPA, Fla., June 9, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- TuHURA Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:HURA) ("TuHURA" or the "Company"), a Phase 3 immune-oncology company developing novel technologies to overcome resistance to cancer immunotherapy, today announced that the FDA has removed the manufacturing-related partial clinical hold on the Company's Phase 3 accelerated approval trial for IFx-2.0, thereby allowing the trial to proceed as agreed to under the previously announced SPA Agreement with the FDA. "We are grateful for the collaborative interaction with the reviewers at the Office of Therapeutic Products (OTP) and the Oncology Center of Excellence (OCE), including their quick response time and, importantly, their helpful recommendations going forward," stated James Bianco, M.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of TuHURA Biosciences. "The removal of the partial clinical hold allows TuHURA to begin the trial's initiation and activation of clinical sites for the Phase 3 accelerated approval trial of IFx-2.0," continued Dr. Bianco. "We are also pleased that the removal of the partial clinical hold represents the achievement of the second milestone funding condition under our recently announced private placement, thereunder trigging the payment to the Company of an additional $2.23 million under the financing." The Company's Phase 3 accelerated approval trial of IFx-2.0, will be conducted under an SPA Agreement with the U.S. FDA, and will evaluate IFx-2.0 as an adjunctive therapy administered weekly for three weeks concurrent with the approved dose and schedule for Keytruda® compared to Keytruda® plus placebo in the first line treatment of patients with advanced or metastatic MCC. Keytruda® is currently approved in MCC under accelerated approval based on Overall Response Rate (ORR). The pivotal trial for IFx-2.0 is expected to enroll 118 across approximately 22 to 25 U.S. sites. Trial participants will be randomized on a 1:1 basis and receive Keytruda® in both arms, for up to two years, or until disease progression or Keytruda® related toxicities. The primary endpoint for the trial is ORR with a key secondary endpoint of Progression Free Survival (PFS). Other secondary endpoints are safety, duration of response, and overall survival. Accelerated approval is based on the successful achievement of the ORR primary endpoint. PFS, the key secondary endpoint, if successfully achieved, without a detrimental effect on overall survival, could satisfy the requirement for regular approval without the requirement for a post approval confirmatory trial (in contrast to most accelerated approval trials). About TuHURA Biosciences, Inc. TuHURA Biosciences, Inc. (Nasdaq: HURA) is a Phase 3 immuno-oncology company developing novel technologies to overcome primary and acquired resistance to cancer immunotherapy, two of the most common reasons cancer immunotherapies fail to work or stop working in the majority of patients with cancer. TuHURA's lead innate immune agonist, IFx-2.0, is designed to overcome primary resistance to checkpoint inhibitors. TuHURA is preparing to initiate a single randomized placebo-controlled Phase 3 registration trial of IFx-2.0 administered as an adjunctive therapy to Keytruda® (pembrolizumab) compared to Keytruda® plus placebo in first-line treatment for advanced or metastatic Merkel Cell Carcinoma. Following its proposed merger with Kineta, Inc., if completed, the Company expects to advance Kineta's novel VISTA inhibiting antibody into a randomized Phase 2 trial in NPM1 mutated r/r AML in combination with a menin inhibitor. In addition to its innate immune agonist product candidate, TuHURA is leveraging its Delta Opioid Receptor technology to develop first-in-class, bi-specific antibody drug conjugates and antibody peptide conjugates targeting Myeloid Derived Suppressor Cells to inhibit their immune-suppressing effects on the tumor microenvironment to prevent T cell exhaustion and acquired resistance to checkpoint inhibitors and cellular therapies. For more information, please visit and connect with TuHURA on Facebook, X, and LinkedIn. CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS This press release contains certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of, and subject to the safe harbor created by, Section 27A of the Securities Act, Section 21E of the Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are based only on our current beliefs, expectations and assumptions regarding the future of our business, future plans and strategies, projections, anticipated events and other future conditions. In some cases you can identify these statements by forward-looking words such as "believe," "may," "will," "estimate," "continue," "anticipate," "intend," "could," "should," "would," "project," "plan," "expect," "goal," "seek," "future," "likely" or the negative or plural of these words or similar expressions. Examples of such forward-looking statements include but are not limited to express or implied statements regarding TuHURA's expectations, hopes, beliefs, intentions or strategies regarding the future and include, without limitation, statements regarding, TuHURA's IFx-Hu2.0 product candidate and anticipated Phase 3 trial, its tumor microenvironment modulators development program, its potential acquisition by merger of Kineta Inc. and the statements about Kineta's VISTA-101 development program, and any developments or results in connection with the foregoing and the anticipated regulatory pathway and timing of the foregoing development programs, studies and trials. In addition, any statements that refer to projections, forecasts or other characterizations of future events or circumstances, including any underlying assumptions, are forward-looking statements. You are cautioned that such statements are not guarantees of future performance and that actual results or developments may differ materially from those set forth in these forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from these forward-looking statements are described in detail in our registration statements, reports and other filings with the SEC, which are available on the combined company's website, and at The forward-looking statements and other information contained in this press release are made as of the date hereof, and TuHURA does not undertake any obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statements or information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless so required by applicable securities laws. Nothing herein shall constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities. Investor Contact: Monique KosseGilmartin GroupMonique@ View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE TuHURA Biosciences, Inc. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Miami Herald
5 days ago
- Business
- Miami Herald
Candidates for California governor face off about affordability, high cost of living in first bipartisan clash
SACRAMENTO, Calif. - In a largely courteous gathering of a half dozen of California's top gubernatorial candidates, four Democrats and two Republicans agreed that despite the state boasting one of the world's largest economies, too many of its residents are suffering because of the affordability crisis in the state. Their strategies on how to improve the state's economy, however, largely embraced the divergent views of their respective political parties as they discussed housing costs, high-speed rail, tariffs, climate change and homelessness on Wednesday evening at the first bipartisan event in the 2026 governor race to replace termed-out Gov. Gavin Newsom. "Californians are innovators. They are builders, they are designers, they are creators, and that is the reason that we have the fourth largest economy in the world," said former Rep. Katie Porter., a Democrat from Irvine "But businesses and workers are being held back by the same thing. It is too expensive to do things here. It is too expensive to raise a family. It is too expensive to run a business." Conservative commentator Steve Hilton, a Republican, argued that state leaders need to end the "stranglehold" of unions, lawyers and climate change activists on California policy. "I've been traveling this state. Everywhere I go, it's the same story, this heartbreaking word that I get from every business I meet, every family is in such a struggle in California," he said, with a raspy voice he explained immediately upon taking the stage was caused by a sore throat. The candidates spoke to about 800 people at a California Chamber of Commerce dinner at an 80-minute panel at the convention center in Sacramento. The chamber's decision on who to invite to the forum was based on which ones were leaders in public opinion surveys and fundraising. Making the cut were former Senate President Pro Tem Toni Atkins, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, Hilton, Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, Porter and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. The sharpest exchange of the evening was between Kounalakis, a Democrat, and Bianco, a Republican. After the candidates were asked about President Trump's erratic tariff policies, Kounalakis cited her experience working for her father's reat estate company as she criticized Bianco for arguing for a wait-and-see approach about the president's undulating plans. "You're not a businessman, you're a government employee," she said to Bianco. "You've got a pension, you're going to do just fine. Small businesses are suffering from this, and it's only going to get worse, and it's driven, by the way, it is driven by Donald Trump's vindictiveness toward countries he doesn't like, countries he wants to annex, or states he doesn't like, people he doesn't like. This is hurting California, hurting our people, and it's only going to make things worse, until we can get him out of the White House." Bianco countered that Kounalakis and the other Democrat gubernatorial candidates are directly responsible for the economic woes facing Californians because they have an "unquenchable thirst" for money to fund their liberal agenda. "I just feel like I'm in the Twilight Zone. I have a billionaire telling me that my 32 years of public service is okay for my retirement," he said. "It's taxes and regulations that are driving every single thing in California up. We pay the highest taxes, we pay the highest gas, we pay the highest housing, we pay the highest energy." The Democrats on stage, though largely agreeing about policy, sought to differentiate themselves. The sharpest divide was about whether to raise the minimum wage. On Monday, labor advocates in Los Angeles proposed raising it in Los Angeles County Atkins reflected most of her fellow Democrats' views, saying that while she wanted to see higher wages for workers, "now is not the time." Villaraigosa said that while he believes in a higher minimum wage, "we can't just keep raising the minimum wage." Kounalakis, though, said not increasing the minimum wage would be inhumane. "I think we should be working for that number, yes I do," she said. "You want to throw poor people under the bus." California's high cost of living is a pressing concern among the state's voters, and the issue is expected to play a major role in the 2026 governor's face. Nearly half feel worse off now compared with last year, and more than half felt less hopeful about their economic well-being, according to a poll released in May by the UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies that was co-sponsored by The Times. Nearly exactly a year before the gubernatorial primary next year, the event was the first time Democratic and Republican candidates have shared a stage. It was also the first time GOP candidates Bianco and Hilton have appeared together. Although the state's leftward electoral tilt makes it challenging for a Republican to win the race – Californians last elected GOP politicians to statewide office in 2006 - Bianco and Hilton are battling to win one of the top two spots in next year's primary election. The pair expressed similar views about broadly ending liberal policies in the state, such as stopping the state's high-speed rail project and reducing environmental restrictions such as the state's climate-change efforts that they argue have increased costs while making no meaningful impact on the consumption of fossil fuels. A crucial question is whether President Trump, who both Bianco and Hilton fully support, will eventually endorse one of the Republican candidates. The gubernatorial candidates, some of whom have been running more than a year, have largely focused on fundraising since entering the race. But the contest to replace termed-out Gov. Gavin Newsom is growing more public and heated, as seen at last weekend's California Democratic Party convention. Several of the party's candidates scurried around the Anaheim convention center, trying to curry favor with the state's most liberal activists while also drawing contrasts with their rivals. But the Democratic field is partially frozen as former Vice President Kamala Harris weighs entering the race, a decision she is expected to make by the end of the summer. Harris' name did not come up during the forum. There were a handful of light moments. Porter expressed a common concern among the state's residents when they talk about the cost of living in the state. "What really keeps me up at night, why I'm running for governor, is whether my children are going to be able to afford to live here, whether they're going to ever get off my couch and have their own home," she said. Copyright (C) 2025, Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Portions copyrighted by the respective providers.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Candidates for California governor face off about affordability, high cost of living in first bipartisan clash
In a largely courteous gathering of a half dozen of California's top gubernatorial candidates, four Democrats and two Republicans agreed that despite the state boasting one of the world's largest economies, too many of its residents are suffering because of the affordability crisis in the state. Their strategies on how to improve the state's economy, however, largely embraced the divergent views of their respective political parties as they discussed housing costs, high-speed rail, tariffs, climate change and homelessness on Wednesday evening at the first bipartisan event in the 2026 governor race to replace termed-out Gov. Gavin Newsom. "Californians are innovators. They are builders, they are designers, they are creators, and that is the reason that we have the fourth largest economy in the world," said former Rep. Katie Porter., a Democrat from Irvine "But businesses and workers are being held back by the same thing. It is too expensive to do things here. It is too expensive to raise a family. It is too expensive to run a business." Conservative commentator Steve Hilton, a Republican, argued that state leaders need to end the "stranglehold" of unions, lawyers and climate change activists on California policy. "I've been traveling this state. Everywhere I go, it's the same story, this heartbreaking word that I get from every business I meet, every family is in such a struggle in California," he said, with a raspy voice he explained immediately upon taking the stage was caused by a sore throat. The candidates spoke to about 800 people at a California Chamber of Commerce dinner at an 80-minute panel at the convention center in Sacramento. The chamber's decision on who to invite to the forum was based on which ones were leaders in public opinion surveys and fundraising. Making the cut were former Senate President Pro Tem Toni Atkins, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, Hilton, Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, Porter and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. The sharpest exchange of the evening was between Kounalakis, a Democrat, and Bianco, a Republican. After the candidates were asked about President Trump's erratic tariff policies, Kounalakis cited her experience working for her father's reat estate company as she criticized Bianco for arguing for a wait-and-see approach about the president's undulating plans. "You're not a businessman, you're a government employee," she said to Bianco. "You've got a pension, you're going to do just fine. Small businesses are suffering from this, and it's only going to get worse, and it's driven, by the way, it is driven by Donald Trump's vindictiveness toward countries he doesn't like, countries he wants to annex, or states he doesn't like, people he doesn't like. This is hurting California, hurting our people, and it's only going to make things worse, until we can get him out of the White House." Bianco countered that Kounalakis and the other Democrat gubernatorial candidates are directly responsible for the economic woes facing Californians because they have an "unquenchable thirst" for money to fund their liberal agenda. "I just feel like I'm in the Twilight Zone. I have a billionaire telling me that my 32 years of public service is okay for my retirement," he said. "It's taxes and regulations that are driving every single thing in California up. We pay the highest taxes, we pay the highest gas, we pay the highest housing, we pay the highest energy." The Democrats on stage, though largely agreeing about policy, sought to differentiate themselves. The sharpest divide was about whether to raise the minimum wage. On Monday, labor advocates in Los Angeles proposed raising it in Los Angeles County Read more: Labor groups, officials push for a minimum wage of at least $25 an hour in L.A. County Atkins reflected most of her fellow Democrats' views, saying that while she wanted to see higher wages for workers, "now is not the time." Villaraigosa said that while he believes in a higher minimum wage, "we can't just keep raising the minimum wage." Kounalakis, though, said not increasing the minimum wage would be inhumane. "I think we should be working for that number, yes I do," she said. "You want to throw poor people under the bus." California's high cost of living is a pressing concern among the state's voters, and the issue is expected to play a major role in the 2026 governor's face. Nearly half feel worse off now compared with last year, and more than half felt less hopeful about their economic well-being, according to a poll released in May by the UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies that was co-sponsored by The Times. Read more: Despite political promises, Californians are stressed about their finances Nearly exactly a year before the gubernatorial primary next year, the event was the first time Democratic and Republican candidates have shared a stage. It was also the first time GOP candidates Bianco and Hilton have appeared together. Although the state's leftward electoral tilt makes it challenging for a Republican to win the race – Californians last elected GOP politicians to statewide office in 2006 — Bianco and Hilton are battling to win one of the top two spots in next year's primary election. The pair expressed similar views about broadly ending liberal policies in the state, such as stopping the state's high-speed rail project and reducing environmental restrictions such as the state's climate-change efforts that they argue have increased costs while making no meaningful impact on the consumption of fossil fuels. Read more: Who is running for California governor in 2026? Meet the candidates A crucial question is whether President Trump, who both Bianco and Hilton fully support, will eventually endorse one of the Republican candidates. The gubernatorial candidates, some of whom have been running more than a year, have largely focused on fundraising since entering the race. But the contest to replace termed-out Gov. Gavin Newsom is growing more public and heated, as seen at last weekend's California Democratic Party convention. Several of the party's candidates scurried around the Anaheim convention center, trying to curry favor with the state's most liberal activists while also drawing contrasts with their rivals. Read more: With Harris on the sideline, top Democratic candidates for California governor woo party loyalists But the Democratic field is partially frozen as former Vice President Kamala Harris weighs entering the race, a decision she is expected to make by the end of the summer. Harris' name did not come up during the forum. There were a handful of light moments. Porter expressed a common concern among the state's residents when they talk about the cost of living in the state. "What really keeps me up at night, why I'm running for governor, is whether my children are going to be able to afford to live here, whether they're going to ever get off my couch and have their own home," she said. Get the L.A. Times Politics newsletter. Deeply reported insights into legislation, politics and policy from Sacramento, Washington and beyond, in your inbox twice per week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Los Angeles Times
5 days ago
- Business
- Los Angeles Times
Candidates for California governor face off about affordability, high cost of living in first bipartisan clash
SACRAMENTO — In a largely courteous gathering of a half dozen of California's top gubernatorial candidates, four Democrats and two Republicans agreed that despite the state boasting one of the world's largest economies, too many of its residents are suffering because of the affordability crisis in the state. Their strategies on how to improve the state's economy, however, largely embraced the divergent views of their respective political parties as they discussed housing costs, high-speed rail, tariffs, climate change and homelessness on Wednesday evening at the first bipartisan event in the 2026 governor race to replace termed-out Gov. Gavin Newsom. 'Californians are innovators. They are builders, they are designers, they are creators, and that is the reason that we have the fourth largest economy in the world,' said former Rep. Katie Porter., a Democrat from Irvine 'But businesses and workers are being held back by the same thing. It is too expensive to do things here. It is too expensive to raise a family. It is too expensive to run a business.' Conservative commentator Steve Hilton, a Republican, argued that state leaders need to end the 'stranglehold' of unions, lawyers and climate change activists on California policy. 'I've been traveling this state. Everywhere I go, it's the same story, this heartbreaking word that I get from every business I meet, every family is in such a struggle in California,' he said, with a raspy voice he explained immediately upon taking the stage was caused by a sore throat. The candidates spoke to about 800 people at a California Chamber of Commerce dinner at an 80-minute panel at the convention center in Sacramento. The chamber's decision on who to invite to the forum was based on which ones were leaders in public opinion surveys and fundraising. Making the cut were former Senate President Pro Tem Toni Atkins, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, Hilton, Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, Porter and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. The sharpest exchange of the evening was between Kounalakis, a Democrat, and Bianco, a Republican. After the candidates were asked about President Trump's erratic tariff policies, Kounalakis cited her experience working for her father's reat estate company as she criticized Bianco for arguing for a wait-and-see approach about the president's undulating plans. 'You're not a businessman, you're a government employee,' she said to Bianco. 'You've got a pension, you're going to do just fine. Small businesses are suffering from this, and it's only going to get worse, and it's driven, by the way, it is driven by Donald Trump's vindictiveness toward countries he doesn't like, countries he wants to annex, or states he doesn't like, people he doesn't like. This is hurting California, hurting our people, and it's only going to make things worse, until we can get him out of the White House.' Bianco countered that Kounalakis and the other Democrat gubernatorial candidates are directly responsible for the economic woes facing Californians because they have an 'unquenchable thirst' for money to fund their liberal agenda. 'I just feel like I'm in the Twilight Zone. I have a billionaire telling me that my 32 years of public service is okay for my retirement,' he said. 'It's taxes and regulations that are driving every single thing in California up. We pay the highest taxes, we pay the highest gas, we pay the highest housing, we pay the highest energy.' The Democrats on stage, though largely agreeing about policy, sought to differentiate themselves. The sharpest divide was about whether to raise the minimum wage. On Monday, labor advocates in Los Angeles proposed raising it in Los Angeles County Atkins reflected most of her fellow Democrats' views, saying that while she wanted to see higher wages for workers, 'now is not the time.' Villaraigosa said that while he believes in a higher minimum wage, 'we can't just keep raising the minimum wage.' Kounalakis, though, said not increasing the minimum wage would be inhumane. 'I think we should be working for that number, yes I do,' she said. 'You want to throw poor people under the bus.' California's high cost of living is a pressing concern among the state's voters, and the issue is expected to play a major role in the 2026 governor's face. Nearly half feel worse off now compared with last year, and more than half felt less hopeful about their economic well-being, according to a poll released in May by the UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies that was co-sponsored by The Times. Nearly exactly a year before the gubernatorial primary next year, the event was the first time Democratic and Republican candidates have shared a stage. It was also the first time GOP candidates Bianco and Hilton have appeared together. Although the state's leftward electoral tilt makes it challenging for a Republican to win the race – Californians last elected GOP politicians to statewide office in 2006 — Bianco and Hilton are battling to win one of the top two spots in next year's primary election. The pair expressed similar views about broadly ending liberal policies in the state, such as stopping the state's high-speed rail project and reducing environmental restrictions such as the state's climate-change efforts that they argue have increased costs while making no meaningful impact on the consumption of fossil fuels. A crucial question is whether President Trump, who both Bianco and Hilton fully support, will eventually endorse one of the Republican candidates. The gubernatorial candidates, some of whom have been running more than a year, have largely focused on fundraising since entering the race. But the contest to replace termed-out Gov. Gavin Newsom is growing more public and heated, as seen at last weekend's California Democratic Party convention. Several of the party's candidates scurried around the Anaheim convention center, trying to curry favor with the state's most liberal activists while also drawing contrasts with their rivals. But the Democratic field is partially frozen as former Vice President Kamala Harris weighs entering the race, a decision she is expected to make by the end of the summer. Harris' name did not come up during the forum. There were a handful of light moments. Porter expressed a common concern among the state's residents when they talk about the cost of living in the state. 'What really keeps me up at night, why I'm running for governor, is whether my children are going to be able to afford to live here, whether they're going to ever get off my couch and have their own home,' she said.
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Civil rights groups sue to end cash bail in Riverside County, alleging dangerous jail conditions
A cadre of civil rights groups brought a lawsuit late Wednesday challenging Riverside County's use of cash bail to detain people as they await trial, citing squalid conditions inside the county's jails where dozens of inmates have died in recent years. The class-action suit is the latest to challenge the legality of cash bail systems in California after a 2021 state Supreme Court ruling found it is unconstitutional to jail defendants solely because of their inability to pay their way out from behind bars. 'Every day, Riverside County imprisons people based on nothing more than their inability to pay an arbitrary, pre-set amount of cash that Defendants demand for their release," attorneys for the civil rights groups argue in the 80-page complaint. 'These individuals are not detained because they are too dangerous to release: The government would release them right away if they could pay. They are detained simply because they are too poor to purchase their freedom.' The suit was brought by the Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit Civil Rights Corps, Public Justice in Oakland and several other law firms on behalf of two people incarcerated in Riverside County jails and two local faith leaders. It names as defendants the Riverside County Sheriff's Department, Sheriff Chad Bianco, the Riverside County Superior Court system and the county. Lt. Deirdre Vickers, a sheriff's department spokesperson, said she could not comment on pending litigation, as did a representative for the county court system. The county executive's office did not immediately respond to requests for comment. While the suit argues money bail is unconstitutional across California and seeks an injunction ending its use, attorneys said they are focusing on Riverside County following a spate of deaths in the jails in 2022. That year, Riverside County recorded 18 inmate fatalities, the highest number in a decade. The following year, California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta, a Democrat, opened what remains an ongoing investigation into complaints about living conditions in the county jails and allegations that deputies use excessive force against detainees. Inmate deaths have fallen since 2022. The county reported 13 jail fatalities in 2023 and six last year, according to Vickers. Bianco — a law-and-order conservative who has joined a crowded field of Democrats to succeed Gov. Gavin Newsom in the 2026 election — has previously dismissed the state's investigation into his jails as politically motivated. Bianco maintains the jail deaths, many of which authorities attribute to drug overdoses and suicides, are a reflection of the inmates' life choices rather than a sign of any problem with the jail system. 'Every single one of these inmate deaths was out of anyone's control,' Bianco said after news of the state investigation broke. 'The fact of the matter is that they just happened to be in our custody.' The cash bail system has deep roots in the U.S. as a means of pressuring defendants to show up for scheduled court appearances. Attend trial, and the sizable cash payments are returned to you or your family; skip court, and you forfeit your deposit. Critics argue it effectively creates a two-tiered justice system, allowing wealthy defendants to pay their way out while awaiting trial, and leaving low-income defendants stuck behind bars. Proponents of eliminating the bail system contend that decisions about whether to jail defendants ahead of trial should be based on the severity of their crimes and the risk they pose to public safety, and not hinge on their income status. Brian Hardingham, a senior attorney with Public Justice, said people sometimes spend days in jail awaiting their first court appearance, only for a prosecutor to decline to file a case presented by local police. That stint behind bars can have an outsize effect on people's lives, especially if they are low-income, Hardingham said. 'You meet people with 6-month-old kids in jail who, if they're lucky, there is a partner or a parent or someone who can watch their kids," he said, adding that even a brief stretch in a county jail can result in people losing their job, vehicle or even their residence. Supporters of the cash bail system, including many law enforcement groups, say that doing away with it would leave too many defendants free to potentially flee and re-offend, leading to crime spikes. Read more: Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco enters the 2026 California governor's race The issue grew increasingly controversial during the COVID-19 pandemic, when the virus spread with deadly consequences through the state's jails and prisons. Los Angeles County instituted a zero-bail policy for most offenses in 2020, trying to reduce jail crowding at a time when the virus was spreading rapidly. That policy was rescinded in June 2022. Despite concerns from police groups, a 2023 report to the L.A. County Board of Supervisors showed re-arrest and failure-to-appear rates remained relatively static among those freed pre-trial while the zero-bail policy was in place. A similar lawsuit to the one filed against Riverside County prompted Los Angeles County court officials to revise their bail policies in 2023. Under the new system, the vast majority of defendants accused of misdemeanors or nonviolent felonies are now cited and released, or freed under specified conditions after a judge reviews their case. Defendants accused of serious offenses, including murder, manslaughter, rape and most types of assault, still face a stiff cash bail schedule. Fears that the new system would result in a crime spike have not been borne out. Total crime in areas patrolled by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department fell by about 2% in 2024, the first calendar year the reduced bail policy was in place, according to department data. The city of Los Angeles has seen significant decreases in the number of robberies, property crimes and aggravated assaults committed this year, as of mid-May, records show. Given the 2021 state Supreme Court ruling and the changes in Los Angeles, Hardingham said he is hopeful other counties will shift their bail policies without having to engage in a court fight. "We would hope that they would be willing to see the writing on the wall and make the changes that are necessary," he said. Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
