Warrant Strategy
Managing old warrants aged anywhere from 5 to 25 years contributes to significant backlogs in the legal system. This report highlights Cook County’s strategic efforts to address a backlog of …
Ability to Pay: Closing the Access to Justice Gap with Policy Solutions for Unaffordable Fines and Fees
Financial circumstances heavily influence an individual’s access to justice, especially when it comes to the fines and fees imposed by the justice system. These costs contribute to a two-tiered justice …
Clearing The Road For Ohioans With Suspended Licenses: A Look At Ohio’s Reinstatement Fee Amnesty Program
For drivers in Ohio, there are over 30 offenses, with penalties ranging from $15 to $600, that may trigger a license suspension. The Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV) then …
People Over Profits: A Truly Free, No Cost Tablet Program for Incarcerated People in San Francisco
Tablets are often utilized in jails and prisons to generate revenue from incarcerated individuals and their families, with high costs for the tablets and access to services making them unaffordable …
Report to the Legislature: Online Infraction Adjudication and Ability-to-Pay Determinations
This report uses data from California courts that have adopted the MyCitations tool to evaluate the pilot program. As of January 1, 2023, over 66,000 ability-to-pay requests were submitted through …
Rethinking How Law Enforcement Is Deployed
To mitigate the risk of harm, municipalities have tasked non-law enforcement responders with addressing nonviolent social and medical issues and narrowed police discretion and duties in traffic enforcement. Many have …
Eliminating Discriminatory Fines and Fees: Learning from San Franscisco
In New York City, fines and fees provide the city with more than $2 billion in revenue each year. However, many of these fines and fees fall on lower income …
RI opens path for former inmates to break impoverishing cycle of court fees and fines
Many Rhode Islanders are saddled with debt after incarceration, making reentering into their communities difficult. After the death of George Floyd in Minnesota, Rhode Island’s Supreme Court Committee on Racial …
Eliminating fees in the Alameda County juvenile justice system meaningfully reduced financial burdens on families
Parents and families are typically responsible for the financial responsibilities imposed on minors by the juvenile justice system. In 2018, California became the first state to repeal administrative fees in …
2021 Driving Injustice: Consequences and Disparities in North Carolina Legal and Traffic Debt
An increase in fines, fees, and license suspension for traffic tickets, infractions, and misdemeanors has created a vicious cycle of court debt. People who do not pay their debt within …