BRIAN WITTE
Associated Press

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — Officials in the District of Columbia have outlined the benefits of making some pretrial reforms that are under consideration in Maryland by a state panel.

A Maryland commission that met Monday in Annapolis is working to address a ruling by Maryland’s highest court requiring an attorney at initial bail hearings.

The panel is weighing how to reduce the burden on court commissioners who decide whether someone is detained. One of those methods is to use risk-assessment tools to incarcerate only people who are a danger to the community or a flight risk.

Spurgeon Kennedy, director of strategic development for District of Columbia’s pretrial services, told the panel that risk-assessment tools have been effective in a variety of jurisdictions around the country that have implemented them, including the District of Columbia.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.