Fact Check: People In LA Who Commit Violent Crimes Will NOT Be 'Set Free On As Of Today'

Fact Check

  • by: Alexis Tereszcuk
Fact Check: People In LA Who Commit Violent Crimes Will NOT Be 'Set Free On As Of Today' Bail Remains

Will people in Los Angeles who have committed violent crimes be "set free" as of May 24, 2023? No, that's not true: A court injunction was scheduled to go into effect in Los Angeles County on May 24, 2023, that reinstated a no-bail policy first implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic in an effort to reduce overcrowding in county jails. However, the judge ruled that those who commit "capital offenses" and other high levels of crime were not eligible for no-bail release and therefore would not be "set free."

The claim appeared in a post (archived here) on Instagram on May 24, 2023. It opened:

Ok boys and girls or he she they, let the craziness begin, this is a list of bon violent crimes in LA that peiple will be set free on as of today, what are your thoughts 👇

This is what the post looked like on Instagram at the time of the writing of this fact check:

image - 2023-05-26T114505.662.png

(Source: Instagram screenshot taken on Fri May 26 15:12:45 2023 UTC)

The post does not indicate a source for the claim or citation for the list. On May 24, 2023, a judge in Los Angeles County issued an injunction in a class-action lawsuit that said people who were arrested for nonviolent, low-level offenses would not be forced to post bail. On page 57 of the injunction, the judge states that the injunction does not allow for the release of those accused of "capital offenses" and other crimes:

This injunction does not apply to arrestees who are arrested for a capital offenses or who are otherwise ineligible for admission to bail under California law, arrested for an offense enumerated under Penal Code Section 1270.1(a), who have an open, unresolved criminal case, or are the subject of an arrest warrant.

Page 58 of the court documents states the no-bail guidelines will follow those in the Third Los Angeles County Emergency Bail Scheduled Modification from October 2020. That document states:

GENERAL RULE
As a rule, the bail for all infraction, misdemeanor, and felony offenses will be set at $0, with the exception of the offenses listed below.

The list on the social-media post includes crimes that are listed on page three under FELONY EXCEPTIONS. All are subject to a judge's decision. The judge is allowed to impose bail:

Bail for the offenses listed below shall be set within the discretion of the bench officer utilizing the 2020 Felony Bail Schedule as a guide, and in consideration of the facts of the case, the risk to public safety, as well as consideration of the COVID-19 emergency goal of reducing the jail population.

People who have committed these crimes or are accused of these crimes will not automatically be "set free" or released on bail.

Want to inform others about the accuracy of this story?

See who is sharing it (it might even be your friends...) and leave the link in the comments.:


  Alexis Tereszcuk

Alexis Tereszcuk is a writer and fact checker at Lead Stories and an award-winning journalist who spent over a decade breaking hard news and celebrity scoop with RadarOnline and Us Weekly.

As the Entertainment Editor, she investigated Hollywood stories and conducted interviews with A-list celebrities and reality stars.  

Alexis’ crime reporting earned her spots as a contributor on the Nancy Grace show, CNN, Fox News and Entertainment Tonight, among others.

Read more about or contact Alexis Tereszcuk

About Us

International Fact-Checking Organization Meta Third-Party Fact Checker

Lead Stories is a fact checking website that is always looking for the latest false, misleading, deceptive or inaccurate stories, videos or images going viral on the internet.
Spotted something? Let us know!.

Lead Stories is a:


WhatsApp Tipline

Have a tip or a question? Chat with our friendly robots on WhatsApp!

Add our number +1 (404) 655-4223, follow this link or scan the image below with your phone:

@leadstories

Subscribe to our newsletter

* indicates required

Please select all the ways you would like to hear from Lead Stories LLC:

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. For information about our privacy practices, please visit our website.

We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By clicking below to subscribe, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing. Learn more about Mailchimp's privacy practices here.

Most Read

Most Recent

Share your opinion