Pretrial Services
Mission
Mesa County Pretrial Services (PTS) provides two services to the local Criminal Justice System in an effort to keep jail costs down while maintaining public safety. PTS provides information about defendants housed in the Mesa County Detention Facility (MCDF) who have been arrested and charged with crimes and PTS supervises approved defendants, released from the MCDF, as a condition of Personal Recognizance Bond.
The objectives of the information gathering component of the program are to provide accurate and timely information and appropriate bond recommendations for pretrial defendants to the County Court Judges, District Attorney’s Office and the Public Defender’s Office for bond decisions. Setting the appropriate bond for each defendant ensures public safety, helps control the pretrial population in the MCDF, and provides fairness to the defendant.
The objectives of the supervision component of the program are to assist pretrial defendants placed on supervision in making all their required court appearances and to ensure they comply with any bond conditions. This is designed to reduce the “failure to appear rate” in court and to assist defendants with questions they have about the process, conditions of their bond, and their compliance with those conditions.
The program administration and the staff are committed to the highest levels of ethical and professional conduct. The credibility of the program is imperative and the staff are committed to maintaining it’s established credibility. The Division will strive for program innovation and leadership within the local Criminal Justice Community while maintaining a cost effective program.
What we do
PTS interviews defendants who have been placed in the detention facility, verifies the information provided, gathers criminal history data, and makes written reports to the Court and other criminal justice agencies. This information enables the court to make informed bond decisions. PTS releases some defendants on Personal Recognizance (PR) bonds prior to court.
PTS also supervises some defendants in the community who have been released on bond to ensure compliance with court mandated conditions of bond and appearance in court as required. These clients must adhere to monitoring guidelines as directed by the Court or by PTS staff.
Clients may access all services offered by CJSD and must attend appropriate treatment programs and maintain employment.
Where we are