Jurisdictions to Receive Applied Research Support and Technical Assistance to Improve Outcomes and Make Supervision Less Restrictive for People Awaiting Trial 

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – The Harvard Kennedy School Government Performance Lab (GPL) today announced five jurisdictions which will receive applied research support and technical assistance from its Pretrial Initiative. The Initiative is designed to support state and local jurisdictions seeking to improve outcomes for those awaiting trial while making pretrial supervision less restrictive. 

The recipients are: the Superior Court of Alameda County (California); the Clark County District Court (Washington); the Illinois Office of Statewide Pretrial Services; the Las Vegas Justice Court (Nevada); and the Santa Cruz County Probation Department’s Pretrial Division (California). The Illinois Office of Statewide Pretrial Services will build on previous work with the GPL; the other four recipients are working with the GPL for the first time. 

“Pretrial supervision often creates significant burdens on many of the people involved — those awaiting trial, staff who manage caseloads, and the communities who pay for these systems — without much evidence that these interventions effectively increase public safety,” said GPL Executive Director Gloria Gong. “We’re excited to work with the selected jurisdictions to explore approaches to using data to make better, more fair pretrial decisions.” 

As jurisdictions work to reduce incarceration, more defendants are being released from jail and placed under pretrial supervision, which can include requirements such as drug tests or check-ins with a pretrial officer. However, judges and pretrial staff often lack the information they need — such as who is on supervision and whether they are meeting their requirements — to right-size pretrial conditions, assess their impact, and inform future supervision decisions. Without frequent access to the context provided by high-quality data, judges often assign a high number of supervision conditions that accumulate over time. When supervision conditions are overly restrictive, they can create negative outcomes for a jurisdiction, like larger and unmanageable caseloads for pretrial staff, as well as for people awaiting trial, who can face significant financial and time costs as they seek to remain compliant. 

Through the Pretrial Initiative, the GPL provides jurisdictions with pro bono applied research support and technical assistance focused on making data-driven pretrial supervision decisions and building new processes that allow for alternatives to punitive conditions. This includes the implementation of data-driven performance management (DDPM) — a public management tool that involves high-frequency reviews of performance metrics with key stakeholders to improve target outcomes. Specific areas of support may include real-time data analysis to identify challenges and solutions related to pretrial conditions; hands-on coaching for dashboard and metrics development; training for pretrial stakeholders and judges; and support for convening judicial stakeholders to discuss data and pretrial initiatives.  

The GPL selected recipients using criteria including readiness and willingness to analyze data on pretrial success outcomes; interest and investment of pretrial staff and leadership; and the ability to engage judges as key stakeholders. 

This expansion builds on the successes of a pilot that the GPL led in Harris County, Texas from 2020-2022. There, the GPL worked with Harris County officials to lead data-informed changes to pretrial supervision requirements. 

During the pilot, judges reduced the intensity of supervision requirements for more than 2,200 defendants released into the community while awaiting trial. These reductions increased operational capacity for Harris County Pretrial Services staff and reduced the burden on defendants awaiting trial who were less likely to face restrictive conditions, saving them time and allowing them to better manage their primary responsibilities, like work or child care. Even as supervision orders were lowered for thousands of people, rates of rearrest and compliance with bond conditions did not change. 

Through the Pretrial Initiative, the GPL will also provide coaching support to select jurisdictions in the coming months. For more information, contact Hena Rafiq at hena_rafiq@hks.harvard.edu. 

Statements of Support 

"For the past year, the Harvard Kennedy School Government Performance Lab has worked with us to use data-driven decision-making throughout our agency, including support on creating internal dashboards and generating insights on pretrial client service needs. With the GPL’s continued assistance, we look forward to increasing fairness and equality in the pretrial process.” 
—Joanne Olson, Chief of Staff, Illinois Office of Statewide Pretrial Services 

“Building on the recent restructuring of our pretrial program, we are excited to work with the Harvard Kennedy School Government Performance Lab, which will help us build and test a process to connect those awaiting trial to supportive community services. In doing so, we aim to ensure public safety while creating a future for pretrial services that is rooted in community-based services and data-driven decision-making.” 
—Cory Jacobs, Pretrial Program Manager, Superior Court of Alameda County  

“I am thrilled that the Clark County District Court will receive technical assistance and applied research support from the Harvard Kennedy School Government Performance Lab. We are striving to find the appropriate supervision levels and increase measures of pretrial success, such as reducing recidivism rates, reducing the jail population, imposing appropriate conditions to ensure public safety, and reminding clients about their court dates. By providing judges with actionable data and the GPL’s expertise and experience in pretrial justice, Clark County hopes to become the model agency in Washington State." 
—Mindy Rowland, Pretrial Manager, Clark County District Court 

 “As we work to better measure the success of and improve our pretrial initiatives, we look forward to working with the Harvard Kenney School Government Performance Lab. We see an opportunity to make this a better process for judges, stakeholders, and people awaiting trial, and working with the GPL is an important step forward for our community.” 
—Linsey LaMontagne, Pretrial Division Manager, Las Vegas Justice Court 

“The Santa Cruz County Probation Department is committed to helping families and individuals restore their lives and providing balanced supervision. With applied research support and technical assistance focused on data-driven performance management from the Harvard Kennedy School Government Performance Lab, we will be better positioned to do so.” 
—Yolanda James-Sevilla, Pretrial Division Manager, Santa Cruz County Probation Department, Pretrial Division 

About the Harvard Kennedy School Government Performance Lab 

The Harvard Kennedy School Government Performance Lab (GPL), based in the School’s Taubman Center for State and Local Government, supports state and local governments across the country in designing and implementing solutions to pressing social problems. The GPL has conducted over 240 projects in more than 100 jurisdictions, helping innovative state and local government leaders improve the results they achieve for their residents. An important part of the GPL’s research model involves capturing the insights, tools and practices that are gained through these hands-on projects and sharing them with government leaders across the country.

Contacts: 
Gabi Remz 
gabi_remz@hks.harvard.edu 

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