The Revolving Fund

The Chicago Community Bond Fund (CCBF) operates a revolving fund that pays bond for people charged with crimes in Cook County. CCBF supports individuals whose communities who have been impacted by structural violence and whose bonds are completely out of proportion with their ability to pay. We are committed to building long-term relationships and organizing with people most directly impacted by criminalization and policing: people of color, especially Black people, and the poor. We believe that access to money should not determine freedom, that pretrial incarceration is fundamentally unjust, and that Chicagoans can take action now to help alleviate some of the harm caused by government policies while simultaneously working for systemic change.

How The Chicago Community Bond Fund Works

Police make an arrest. Some people charged with misdemeanors and all people charged with felonies go to bond court.

Bond decisions are made in mere minutes. This determines whether someone is released or detained while their case is pending.

People who can pay bond are released. People who cannot pay bond are incarcerated at Cook County Jail – often for months or even years.

Chicago Community Bond Fund helps family members and friends pay bond when they can’t afford it themselves.

After their bond is paid, the person is released from jail. People free on bond have better case outcomes than people are locked up.

At the conclusion of each case, the bond money is returned to CCBF’s revolving fund and can be used to free more from Cook County Jail.

Our Criteria

Request Help

In anticipation of the elimination of cash bail, CCBF is currently not accepting any new request for assistance to pay bond. We will only be paying a limited number of bonds in 2023. Additionally, we have opened an Informational Hotline in order to provide specific information regarding the changes in pretrial detention, brief legal orientation, and referrals. Please feel free to contact us with any inquiries at: