The Eighth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution prohibits the government from requiring a criminal defendant to pay "excessive bail" in order to get out of jail before trial. Nevertheless, nearly half a million people across the country are in pretrial detention.

A summary of appellate court decisions (with the exception of standards of review) interpreting provisions of the Bail Reform Act from October 12, 1984, the act's effective date, to April 15, 1993.