Corrupt and abusive court fines
Riot police and SWAT cops were the public face of government in Ferguson, but they weren’t the only source of friction. Fergusonians have for years been preyed upon by a judicial system not designed to dispense justice but to fund municipal government on the backs of the poorest citizens. Municipal court fines are the second highest source of revenue in Ferguson, overwhelmingly targeting low-income people who become trapped in a cycle of unpaid tickets, arrest warrants, and fines. Courts in Ferguson, a city of 21,135 people, issued 24,532 warrants in 2013, or three warrants per household. A court system that can’t be trusted by the people is nothing more than oppression under color of justice but again, like the militarization of Ferguson’s police, this is not just an isolated problem in a small Missouri town. It is representative of a pattern in municipalities across the country, and it’s something every citizen should know about…
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled people can’t be sent to jail simply for being too poor to pay fines and fees. A person could only be sentenced if they had the money and “willfully” refused to pay, but the justices did not define what that meant and they certainly didn’t limit the size or nature of the fees. Here’s how courts in Ferguson and around the country are driving a budget-shaped truck through that loophole…
Introduction to criminalization of poverty by Brave New Films
How America turned poverty into a crime, Barbara Ehrenreich, Salon
As Court Fees Rise, The Poor Are Paying The Price, Joseph Shapiro, NPR
The criminalization of poverty, Radley Balko, The Washington Post
Ferguson Sets Broad Change for City Courts, Frances Robles, The New York Times
A Matter of Life and Death: The Danger of an Out-of-Control State, Norm Ornstein, The Atlantic
Rising Court Fees Are Throwing The Poor In Debtors Prison, The Gothamist
Rising Court Fees Make Being Poor A Crime, Matt Staggs, Disinformation
Court Fees Drive Many Poor Defendants Underground, Joseph Shapiro, NPR
Poor People Going to JAIL Because They Can’t Pay Rising Fines and Court Fees Many Don’t Know Exist, Igor Derysh, Latest.com
The criminalization of poverty, Radley Balko, The Washington Post
And why, why, why does any of this matter?
The truth about public trust in government, Charles Barclay Roger, OpenDemocracy
