Pretrial Detention Amendment Act of 2025

COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
OFFICE OF COUNCILMEMBER BROOKE PINTO
THE JOHN A. WILSON BUILDING
1350 PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE, N.W., SUITE 106
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20004

March 24, 2025

Nyasha Howard, Secretary
Council of the District of Columbia
1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20004

Dear Secretary Howard,

Today, along with Councilmember Anita Bonds, I am introducing the “ Pretrial Detention
Amendment Act of 2025.”

District law generally provides that when a person is arrested and charged with a crime, the person
should be released prior to trial (either with or without conditions) unless a judge finds that the
person either (1) is a flight risk, or (2) presents a da nger to the community.1 If a judge finds that
no conditions imposed on a person would reasonably assure the safety of others, or that no
condition would assure the person’s required appearance in court, then the law directs the judge to
order the person detained pretrial.2

In certain situations, there is a “rebuttable presumption” that a person presents a flight risk or a
danger to the community and therefore should be detained prior to trial. A rebuttable presumption
is an inference that the court presumes to be conclusive about the facts presented until or unless
that inference is challenged or “rebut ted” with counter -evidence.3 In these cases, to release a
person, a court can only release a person if it finds that evidence has rebutted the presumption.

B25-0395, the Prioritizing Public Safety Emergency Amendment Act of 2023 (“PPSE”), and
subsequently B25-0345, the Secure DC Omnibus Amendment Act of 202 4 (“Secure DC”) made
changes to pretrial detention. Previously, before PPSE and Secure DC, there was no general
presumption of detention when a court found probable cause to believe that a person has committed
a crime of violence. A lmost all of the situations in which the rebuttable presumption applied
required that the individual committed (or at least had been charged with) a crime prior to the
crime at issue in the case.

PPSE and Secure DC expanded the rebuttable presumption to apply to all charges of crimes of
violence, regardless of whether the individual has previously been convicted or charged with a
crime. It also expanded detention for youth who have committed an offense while armed,
carjacking, sexual abuse or unarmed murder. Secure DC was amended to sunset those provisions,
which are currently set to expire on July 15, 2025. This bill would remove the sunset and make
these changes permanent.

1 D.C. Code § 23-1321(a)-(b).
2 D.C. Code § 23-1322.
3 Legal Information Institute, Rebuttable presumption, available here.

Should you have any questions about this legislation, please contact my Committee and Legislative
Director, Linn Groft, at lgroft@dccouncil.gov.

Thank you,

Brooke Pinto
Ward 2 Councilmember
Chairwoman, Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety
Council of the District of Columbia

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Councilmember Anita Bonds Councilmember Brooke Pinto 2
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A BILL 8
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IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 12
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To amend the Secure DC Omnibus Amendment Act of 2024 to remove the sunset date of certain 17
pretrial detention provisions. 18
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this 20
act may be cited as the “Pretrial Detention Amendment Act of 2025”. 21
Sec. 2. The Secure DC Omnibus Amendment Act of 2024, effective June 8, 2024 (D.C. 22
Law 25-175; 71 DCR 2732), is amended as follows: 23
(a) Section 18(c)(2) is repealed. 24
(b) Section 30(k) is repealed. 25
Sec. 3. Fiscal impact statement. 26
The Council adopts the fiscal impact statement in the committee report as the fiscal 27
impact statement required by section 4a of the General Legislative Procedures Act of 1975, 28
approved October 16, 2006 (120 Stat. 2038; D.C. Official Code § 1-301.47a). 29
Sec. 4. Effective date. 30
This act shall take effect after approval by the Mayor (or in the event of veto by the 31
Mayor, action by the Council to override the veto), a 30-day period of congressional review as 32
provided in section 602(c)(1) of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, approved December 33
24, 1973 (87 Stat. 813; D.C. Official Code § 1-206.02(c)(1)), and publication in the District of 34
Columbia Register. 35
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