Reform · Initiatives
Reform initiatives
Concrete laws, programmes, and pilots that have changed (or attempted to change) how a country incarcerates. Each is editorial — we cite primary sources where possible.
- Section 479 BNSS — release of long-detained undertrialsactive2024–ongoing
India · pre-trial-detention
Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) Section 479, in force from July 2024, requires release of undertrial prisoners who have served one-third of the maximum sentence for non-capital offences (one-half for first-time offenders).
- Expanded indigent defence fundingactive2019–ongoing
United States · pre-trial-detention
California significantly increased state funding for county public defender offices from 2019 onward, including grants tied to early-representation (within 24 hours of arrest) and bail-review advocacy.
Japan · pre-trial-detention
Japan's daiyo kangoku system allows police to hold suspects in police cells (rather than in remand prisons) for up to 23 days before charge, with limited access to defence counsel. Human-rights bodies — including the UN Human Rights Committee and CAT — have repeatedly called for abolition.
- Audiências de Custódia (custody hearings)active2015–ongoing
Brazil · pre-trial-detention
From 2015, every person arrested in Brazil must be presented to a judge within 24 hours, who decides whether pre-trial detention is justified. Replaced a system where remand decisions were made on paper, often after months of incarceration.
- Adversarial criminal justice reformactive2008–2016
Mexico · pre-trial-detention
Constitutional reform replaced Mexico's inquisitorial trial system with an adversarial one featuring oral hearings, the presumption of innocence, and stricter pre-trial-detention criteria. Implemented in stages, completed across all states by 2016.