Lancaster Bail Fund (LBF)

The LBF also manages a bail fund that pays cash bail for accused individuals. ²

Background

According to the Lancaster Bail Fund (LBF) website home page, the organization is fiscally sponsored by the Alliance for Global Justice, an organizing group that serves as a fiscal sponsor to left-of-center and radical-left initiatives. However, according to tax records, LBF has been an independent tax-exempt organization since 2022. The LBF’s website’s donation page also states that LBF is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. ^{1 3 4}

The LBF is a member of the National Bail Fund Network and a partner in the Lancaster County Reentry Coalition. ¹

Advocacy

The Lancaster Bail Fund (LBF) was founded by Michelle Batt, who was working as a public defender in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. After the police-involved death of George Floyd in 2020, Batt resigned from her job and launched the LBF. According to Batt, the American criminal justice system is inherently “violent,” referring to “not only the brutality that defined the last moments of George Floyd’s life and the lives of too many others, but also the ‘violence’ of being forcibly separated and imprisoned.” Batt also alleged the national justice system unfairly targets racial minorities. ⁵

According to the LBF and Batt, cash bail is “an abusive system that criminalizes poverty,” disproportionately harms racial minorities, and can have negative impacts on individuals such as losing their jobs or housing. ²

Activities

The Lancaster Bail Fund (LBF) began operating a bail fund in August 2021 to pay bail for incarcerated individuals. Between August 2021 to April 2023, the LBF stated it had “posted bail for thirty people, preventing 339 days of unnecessary jail time and saving taxpayers an estimated $41,154.60.” None of the 30 individuals were ever sentenced to jail time. ⁶

The LBF launched a petition with POWER Interfaith Lancaster County outlining changes to Lancaster’s bail system that would require that all individuals presented with bail have legal representation, require judges setting bail to write a document stating “why no less restrictive alternative was ordered” and listing financial considerations for the accused, require the county to convene a weekly “commitment review panel” to review new jail policies, and establish a “data-driven analysis” of the Lancaster criminal justice system. As of August 2025, the petition had 401 signatures. ⁷

The LBF supports the ACLU of Pennsylvania’s lawsuit against Lancaster County for its allegedly unconstitutional bail practices. ⁸

In May 2023, during the run-up to local elections for 13 of the county’s 30 court seats, LBF founder Michelle Blatt led the Lancaster County Bail Reform Coalition in producing a questionnaire for candidates. Judge David Ashworth “instructed” district judge candidates to ignore the questionnaire largely concerning cash bail and transparency. Later, Blatt held a media conference with the Coalition accusing Ashworth of “interfering with free speech” and voter suppression. According to Judge Ashworth, publicly answering some of the questions on the Coalition’s questionnaire would constitute violating the state Code of Conduct for district judges, while other questions were outside the purview of judicial duties. ⁹

Leadership

The Lancaster Bail Fund (LBF) was founded and led by Michelle Batt as of 2025. Batt previously worked as a public defender in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. In 2020, following the death of George Floyd, she resigned from her position and started the LBF. She also does pro bono work for the Church World Service. In April 2025, Batt became a legal counsel at the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. According to tax records, Batt did not take a salary from the LBF in 2024. ^{10 11} In 2021, Batt ran as a Democrat for clerk of courts in Lancaster County and was defeated. ¹²