In 2026, voters will decide six ballot measures related to criminal sentencing, penalties, and bail requirements. Each would make criminal justice policy more punitive by increasing penalties or expanding the circumstances under which courts could deny or restrict bail.
Four of the measures concern bail policy. Voters in Alabama approved Amendment 1 on May 19, allowing bail to be denied for defendants charged with certain weapon-discharge offenses or solicitation, attempt, or conspiracy to commit murder. Voters in Indiana, Louisiana, and Tennessee will decide three additional bail-related measures on November 3:
- Indiana: Allow bail to be denied for individuals charged with crimes when the proof is evident or the presumption is strong, and when the accused poses a substantial risk to another person or the community.
- Louisiana: Prohibit post-conviction bail, also known as an appeal bond, for defendants convicted of aggravated offenses against minors.
- : Remove the right to bail when the presumption of guilt is great, and the defendant is accused of acts of terrorism, second-degree murder, aggravated rape of a child, grave torture, or any other offense for which a convicted individual would be required to serve at least 85% of their sentence before release.
The other two measures, both in Colorado, would increase criminal penalties. One would increase penalties related to fentanyl offenses. The other would require life in prison without parole or release for persons convicted of human trafficking a child for sexual servitude.
The ballot measures are part of a broader shift in criminal justice ballot measures since 2022. Between 2012 and 2020, ballot measures proposing less punitive policies outnumbered those proposing more punitive ones: 11 measures decreased or proposed to decrease penalties or bail restrictions, while five increased or proposed to increase them…