Ny trend i USA: Tusentals fattiga som inte klarar betala små bötesbelopp, slängs i fängelse

Fattiga amerikaner som inte klarar att betala mindre skulder till myndigheter sätts i fängelse. Kritiker säger att USA på nytt infört ett 150 år gammalt system med skuldfängelser... (Bild från Dickens, Oliver Twist)
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Debtors Prison Revived in Time for New Obamacare Fees

Publicerad den 27 dec 2013

As if out of a Charles Dickens novel, people struggling to pay overdue fines and fees associated with court costs for even the simplest traffic infractions are being thrown in jail across the United States. http://www.infowars.com/local-courts-...

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Debtors' prison— again

Monday, April 13, 2009 7:45pm

In a little-noticed trend blamed on the state's hard economic times, several courts in Florida have resurrected the de facto debtor's prison — having thousands of Floridians jailed for failing to pay assessed court fees and fines. 

The shortsighted plan threatens to run afoul of the U.S. Constitution. It appears to generate little additional revenue relative to the misery it causes, and it should be stopped.

A recent report by the nonprofit Brennan Center at New York University School of Law highlights the difficulty of trying to get what one researcher called "blood from stone." In Leon County's Collection Court, defendants who fail to pay their court-ordered costs and fines — often hundreds of dollars — are notified to appear at Collections Court and later arrested if they don't show. In the 12 months studied, there were 838 arrests for not appearing in court or failing to pay what was owed. Most people spent hours in jail, but some were held for a week or more.

At $53 per day of incarceration, it is an expensive way to try to collect from people who generally are struggling to meet the expenses of daily living. The center calculated that those incarcerated cost the system $62,085 to bring in $80,450 in debts.

Jail time for being broke is no way to help people get back on their feet after a run-in with the legal system. Judges should be exercising the option in state law that allows them to convert court-ordered obligations into community service. But with the Florida Legislature looking for revenue to fund the courts and other state services, judges are under pressure to wring every available penny out of those who owe. [...]
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http://www.tampabay.com/opinion/editorials/debtors-prisonmdash-again/991963
http://www.infowars.com/local-courts-reviving-debtors-prison-for-overdue-fines-fees/
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/12/26/local-courts-reviving-debtors-prison-for-overdue-fines-fees/

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--Ohio jails debtors--

 

Publicerad den 8 apr 2013

According to a report by the ACLU of Ohio, the state is putting people in jail for for not paying their debts. The study revealed that 1 of 5 people in Heron County prisons were behind bars due to failing to pay pending obligations even though the practice was outlawed in 1833. RT's Rachel Kurzius clarifies what is going on.
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 Vidareläsning:

http://undermattans.blogspot.com/2013/01/kronofogden-slanger-fattiga-med-skulder.html
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Ny trend i USA: Tusentals fattiga som inte klarar betala små bötesbelopp, slängs i fängelse