Debtors' Prisons Archives - Page 2 of 15 - Fines and Fees Justice Center

The Costs of the Punishment Clause

The Punishment Clause in the Thirteenth Amendment, permits involuntary servitude so long as it is imposed pursuant to a criminal punishment. Originating as Black codes and convict leasing, these practices have …

Resolve Traffic Debt: Advocate Toolkit

North Carolina automatically suspends a person’s driver’s license for failure to pay court fees or fines for a motor vehicle offense. Approximately 300,000 North Carolinians have long-term driver’s license suspensions …

Criminalizing Poverty: The Consequences of Court Fees in a Randomized Experiment

Using a randomized controlled trial of court related fee relief for misdemeanor defendants, the authors tested the hypothesis that financial obligations criminalize poverty and later court involvement results from an …

What is Wrong with Monetary Sanctions? Directions for Policy, Practice, and Research

Each year tens of millions of people are assessed fines, fees, and other costs stemming from their contacts with the criminal legal system, ranging from felony convictions to traffic violations. …

It’s Time To Reform Washington’s Harmful System Of Fines And Fees

People with low incomes, disabilities, and Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) shoulder much of the harm from the legal financial obligations (LFOs) levied in Washington’s criminal legal system. …

Monetary Sanctions and Symbiotic Harms

When justice-involved individuals cannot afford their legal debts, their families who provide financial support suffer the unintended negative effects of punishment– also known as symbiotic harms. This study analyzes data …

Unjust Revenue from an Imbalanced Criminal Legal System: How Georgia’s Fines and Fees Worsen Racial Inequality

Georgia’s localities are over-reliant on fines and fees revenue, making up more than 10 percent of their general revenue, while the national average among localities was two percent in 2018. …

Driver’s License Suspension for Unpaid Fines and Fees: The Movement for Reform

Laws that suspend, revoke, or prevent driver’s licenses and restrict driving privileges can limit individuals’ access to employment, healthcare, family, and other necessities. Debt-based (nonpayment of traffic and court-related debt) …

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 …

The predatory dimensions of criminal justice

Throughout American history, criminal justice has played a critical role in resource extraction from slave patrols to convict leasing, chain gangs and exploitative debt, credit and labor arrangements. Today, as …