Interview with Cait Kennedy on July 1, 2020.
Edited for brevity and clarity.
Introduction/About the Project
The court system can be a complicated and arduous process for defendants, even those who find themselves able to afford a private attorney. 66% of felony Federal Defendants require public defenders1, unable to afford private representation. Public defenders are extensively overworked, based on capacity calculations less than 30% of state and county-based public defenders are properly staffed2. Consequently, public defenders are frequently left in situations in which they are limited in the amount of time they can spend on each client, often running in between court appearances.
Where did the idea for [unBail] come from?
[unBail] is a product of the 2018 Cleveland Hackathon, in which a group of students, including Levin College Ph. D. student Cait Kennedy, envisioned a community bail app. Following their win, Kennedy and her group conducted interviews with advocates and former defendants. They quickly found out that the Bail Project, a national group dedicated to providing bail funds to defendants, was already coming to Cleveland. As to not duplicate their efforts, they interviewed community members to identify other gaps in the system. What they found was an incredible need for a new way to help the current system work better and to ensure that more resources are available to those who might come from a lower socioeconomic background.
Tell us how creators and developers plan to keep this technology accessible to all demographics?
[unBail] aims to help individuals navigate the system and reduce things like failures to appear in court through easily understandable and accessible language. Kennedy said that the team has been consulting the Americans with Disabilities Act Guidelines to ensure many levels of accessibility. Additionally, the team plans to use graphics and audio components whenever possible.
This app seems incredibly useful for helping individuals navigating the criminal justice system. How are you raising awareness about the app?
The [unBail] team is working hard to get the project off the ground and into the hands of users. HackCLE and the Cleveland Foundation have been integral partners for moving the idea forward. Furthermore, the team is working with the Cleveland Public Library in order to make the app more widely available once it has been released.
How can [unBail] impact future technologies?
The aim is to use the data they gather from this project to aid policymakers in future reforms to the court systems. It is important to note that user privacy is the top priority for the team. As a result, the team plans to deindividualize and average data whenever possible. The information will be looked at as a whole so that the team can make data-driven recommendations to court systems and policymakers.
To read the full catalog project
Court System Navigation App, [unBail]
For more information:
Contact Cait Kennedy at [email protected] for more information.
