In 2021, a homeless man named Gerald Kowalczyk tried to buy a cheeseburger from Five Guys using multiple credit cards, three of which belonged to other people and were found on the floor. Following this incident, he was charged with multiple offenses, including identity theft and petty theft of lost property. He was arrested, and his bail was set to $75,000. Kowalczyk could not even afford a $7 cheeseburger, which raises the question of why his bail was set so high. This judgement resulted in Kowalczyk to spending up to six months in jail before he pleaded no contest to misdemeanor identity theft, allowing him to be released.  

In 2017, Kenneth Humphrey was arrested due to the allegations against him that he entered his 79 year old neighbors apartment, threatened him, and took a $5 bill and a bottle of cologne. This case was treated as a serious robbery allegation, and prosecutors were suspicous based on his prior record, and the possibility of future offenses. These were allegations, not actual proof of guilt. Humphrey's initial bail was set at $600,000, but later reduced to $350,000. Regardless, the court did not adequately assess his ability to pay and did not impose other ways to address concerns they had. 

On April 27, 2026, Semaj De Leone James, a 21 year old, was accused of attacking an innocent Jewish resident who was simply walking home from a synagogue in the Pico-Robertson neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. Allegedly, James followed the man in a van for some time before getting out and attacking him. The prosectuor requested bail of $125,000; however, James could not afford it. Therefore, the judge ordered him to stay away from the location of the alleged crime. This is a situation in which fairness and public saftey were not adequately assessed, and the victim was consequently failed by the justice system.