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Court programs

Established by the Wisconsin Court System

Pretrial Program

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Overview

The goal of pretrial programming is to develop and implement policies and operational procedures that:

Follow legal and evidence-based practices;
Promote public safety;
Maximize court appearance rates; and
Maximize the use of pretrial release.

Below are state and national resources for counties interested in learning more about the research supporting pretrial programming, including the use of an actuarial pretrial risk assessment tool, such as the Public Safety Assessment (PSA). A list of counties with pretrial programming is also included below.

For more information or to update information on this page, please contact Heather Kierzek in the Office of Court Operations at (608) 266-3121 or Heather.Kierzek@wicourts.gov. Pretrial programs operate at the county level. Defendants should contact their attorney for further information.

Pretrial Pilot Program

The Pretrial Pilot Program was created by the Evidence-Based Decision Making (EBDM) subcommittee of the Wisconsin Criminal Justice Coordinating Council (CJCC). There are seven counties participating in the pilot. The Pretrial Pilot Program is focused on transitioning to a risk-informed system that promotes public safety while reducing reliance on cash bond and pretrial detention.

Pretrial Pilot Program Site Coordinators developed resources to assist counties with implementation of the PSA, including an operational guide and a data collection and program evaluation guide. Links to both of these documents can be found in the Wisconsin Pretrial resources section of this page.

Pretrial training modules

Training module resources

Introduction module

Introduction module

Module 1: Overview

Module 1: Overview

Module 2: Pretrial justice

Module 2: Pretrial justice

Module 3: Public safety assessment

Module 3: Public safety assessment

Module 4: Things to know

Module 4: Things to know

Module 5: Risk factors 1 and 2

Module 5: Risk factors 1 & 2

Module 6: Risk factor 3

Module 6: Risk factor 3

Module 7: Risk factors 4, 5, & 6

Module 7: Risk factors 4, 5, & 6

Module 8: Risk factors 7, 8, & 9

Module 8: Risk factors 7, 8, & 9

Module 9: Criminal history verification

Module 9: Criminal history verification

Module 10: Quality control

Module 10: Quality control

Module 11: Applying scores to RCM

Module 11: Applying scores to RCM

Wisconsin Pretrial Newsletters

Wisconsin Pretrial resources

National Pretrial resources

Advancing Pretrial Policy and Research (APPR)
APPR has created several pretrial research summaries using publicly available information. Summaries are available here on the following topics:
- Court date notification systems
- Pretrial assessment tools
- Pretrial detention
- Pretrial drug testing
- Pretrial location monitoring
- Pretrial monitoring
- The Public Safety Assessment
American Bar Association (ABA) Standards for Criminal Justice: Pretrial Release Third Edition (2007)
Arnold Ventures Pretrial Justice
The Center for Effective Public Policy (CEPP)
National Association of Pretrial Services Agencies (NAPSA)
Standards on Pretrial Release: Revised 2020
National Institute of Corrections (NIC) Pretrial Resources
A Framework for Pretrial Justice: Essential Elements of an Effective Pretrial System and Agency
Fundamentals of Bail: A Resource Guide for Pretrial Practitioners and a Framework for American Pretrial Reform
Measuring What Matters: Outcome and Performance Measures for the Pretrial Services Field
Money as a Criminal Justice Stakeholder: The Judge's Decision to Release or Detain a Defendant Pretrial
Public Safety Assessment (PSA)
National Center for State Courts (NCSC) Pretrial Justice Center for Courts (PJCC)

Wisconsin Pretrial Programs

(*denotes current/former Pretrial Pilot Program site)

Wisconsin Pretrial Programs