Overview

• The Minnesota Freedom Fund (MFF) will cease paying pretrial bail and bond for jailed defendants starting June 1, 2025, citing fiscal constraints and systemic concerns.
• The organization plans to redirect its efforts toward advocacy, community education, and addressing structural injustices in pretrial and immigration detention systems.
• MFF gained national prominence in 2020 after raising $42 million during the George Floyd protests, with over $33 million spent on bail payments and racial justice initiatives.
• Leadership acknowledged that direct bail payments risk perpetuating unjust systems and announced a one-year review to assess the impact of the shift.
• Critics and supporters alike note the complexity of the decision, with public defenders emphasizing the need for broader reforms to the inequitable cash bail system.