It is with a heavy heart that we must end our Cells to Safety program.

First off, we would like to thank you for being there for us from the beginning of our Cells to Safety campaign. Because of YOU we were able to raise $300,000 to put towards people on pretrial home detention. We cannot thank you enough for the impact you have made on the lives of our community members.

BALT began our Cells to Safety Campaign in early 2020 due to an increased use of electronic monitoring due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Community residents were faced with the decision of going to jail or paying private home detention companies $300-$400 a month to be placed on home monitoring. 

As of February 2022, BALT has expended $300,000 to those in need of financial assistance for electronic monitoring fees. At this point, all of the funds raised for this campaign have been utilized. As a result, we must discontinue the program. This was not an easy decision. The loved ones we help to afford electronic monitoring are a part of our community, it is with a heavy heart that we recognize that without further funding, we cannot show up for them the way we have since beginning Cells to Safety. 

It is of utmost importance to us that we do not leave our loved ones without the resources they need. Therefore it is our goal to raise $21,000 to cover our clients’ fees until April 30, 2022. 
BALT is in unwavering support of SB704, which would extend funding for the Judiciary's private home detention monitoring payment program; Maryland is currently covering feed up until June 30, 2022. We are working with other grassroots organizations to extend coverage to June 2023 if passed. This important bill would ensure that loved ones who cannot afford electronic monitoring fees awaiting trial are not paying $300-$500 a month for private home detention. The Bill will cover some, but not all. 

There are a few ways you can help us at this time. The most direct way to help is to donate to our Cells to Safety fund so we can raise the $21,000 we need to support our clients until April 30, 2022. The other way you can help is to support SB704 by calling and emailing legislators urging their support of this important and life changing bill. You can use JOTF’s action alert to access the emails and phone numbers of the legislators offices as well as phone scripts and sample emails.