In a November 15, 2013 article The Baltimore Sun quoted Venable partner Mitch Mirviss on the recent proposal by a task force of the General Assembly in Maryland to overhaul the bail bond system in the state. The members urged the state to replace the current system with one where low-risk defendants are not incarcerated pre-trial when unable to post bail.
Mirviss, with Venable partner Michael Schatzow, won a precedent-setting case in September 2013 that grants indigent defendants the right to counsel at all bail hearings in Maryland, affirmed the proposal. He described bail as “almost a medieval-type concept” of using assets to buy freedom pending trial. “It was a rich man’s device,” he said.
Mirviss remarked that the proposed overhaul of the bail system faces powerful opposition. “The bail bondsmen have a significant influence and authority in Annapolis,” he said.
Mirviss, with Venable partner Michael Schatzow, won a precedent-setting case in September 2013 that grants indigent defendants the right to counsel at all bail hearings in Maryland, affirmed the proposal. He described bail as “almost a medieval-type concept” of using assets to buy freedom pending trial. “It was a rich man’s device,” he said.
Mirviss remarked that the proposed overhaul of the bail system faces powerful opposition. “The bail bondsmen have a significant influence and authority in Annapolis,” he said.