INDIANAPOLIS — A resolution authored by State Sen. Eric Koch, R-Bedford, to amend the Indiana Constitution to let judges deny bail to those deemed a substantial threat to public safety passed out of the Senate Committee on Corrections and Criminal Law Tuesday with a vote of 7-0.
Senate Joint Resolution 1 would help prevent repeat offenders of violent crimes from returning to the streets by allowing judges to deny bail to alleged offenders that prosecutors have shown pose a substantial threat to a person or the community. The Indiana Constitution currently stipulates that bail is withheld only for charges of murder and treason.
To change the Indiana Constitution, a joint resolution must be approved by two separately elected General Assemblies. This resolution previously passed in 2023. If SJR 1 passes both chambers, it will go on the ballot in November this year, where a majority of Hoosiers must vote in favor of the amendment for it to become part of the Indiana Constitution.
“It is important to keep our citizens safe from those who are a threat to the public. Our state must recognize when it is too dangerous to release a defendant awaiting trial,” Koch said. “This resolution would help ensure that dangerous individuals are kept off the streets.”
The resolution will now move to the full Senate for further consideration.
Koch is the chairman of the Senate Committee on Utilities, ranking member of the Senate committees on Commerce and Technology and Judiciary, and a member of the Senate Committee on Corrections and Criminal Law. He represents Senate District 44, which includes Brown, Jackson, Lawrence and Orange counties, and a portion of Monroe County.
