Breanna Grow
/ WGLT
As a senior case worker at Labyrinth, YWCA McLean County’s transitional housing program for formerly incarcerated women, Vera Traver has witnessed the devastating effects of cash bail.
But she’s also lived them as a formerly incarcerated woman herself.
Traver said she spent six months in jail, held on a $100 bond. While that may not seem like much, she didn’t have a job back then, making $100 hard to come by.
The experience still has an impact on her self-esteem. “It made me feel like I’m not even worth $100,” she said. “Sometimes even to this day, I have to remind myself that I am priceless.”