Establishment of pretrial release programs

(a) Legislative findings and purpose. -- It is the purpose of pretrial release programs to employ recommendations from the Council of State Government's Justice Center's Analyses and Policy Options to Reduce Spending on Corrections and Reinvest in Strategies to Increase Public Safety, by providing for uniform statewide risk assessment and monitoring of those released prior to trial, facilitating a statewide response to the problem of overcrowded regional jails and costs to county commissions. (b) Any county, circuit or combination thereof that establishes a pretrial program pursuant to this article shall establish a local community pretrial committee that consists of: (1) A prosecutor, or his or her designee; (2) A county commissioner, or his or her designee; (3) A sheriff, or his or her designee; (4) An executive director of a community corrections program, or his or her designee; (5) A chief probation officer, or his or her designee; and (6) A member of the criminal defense bar. (c) Pretrial release programs may monitor, supervise and assist defendants released prior to trial. (d) Nothing in this article should be construed to prohibit a court from requiring a defendant to post a secured bond as a condition of pretrial release. (e) In addition to funding provided pursuant to subsection (c), section three of this article, pretrial release programs may be funded by appropriations made to the Supreme Court of Appeals for such purpose.