Debtor's Prisons in Ferguson

In Ferguson, Court Fines And Fees Fuel Anger : NPR



We are oh so modern when we say that we don't put people in jail for owing money like we and other countries did in the past.  Debtor's prisons used to hold the poor until some means would gain release for them but we abandoned that practice as barbaric.  We just don't do that any more.



Well, think again.  And now the largest prosecutor of such infringements are the people's own governments.  Those governments prey on the poorest members of their society in order to avoid asking the taxpayers to fund the kind of law enforcement they demand.  A thoroughly dishonest and deceptive practice.



A person is cited to court for a minor non-violent infraction such as speeding or failure to maintain insurance and then, when they can't pay, is assessed fees upon fees to be part of a payment plan while those who are better off just pay the fine or buy a lawyer to get off.  And heaven forbid that a payment can't be made or a person misses the appointment in court.  Such a dreadful infraction will result in an arrest warrant and additional fees thereby increasing the amount that must be paid and the time required to pay it.  Such measures make payday lenders look like charities.



It is a sad day when the governments of citizens become practitioners of the very kinds of behavior they are supposed to eliminate.  It is nothing less that racial and economic discrimination the result of which can be imprisonment and harassment by one's own government.



Of course, these people don't vote in the same numbers that the more well to do folks do so it is to the benefit of those seeking office to find ways to fund this despicable behavior that appears to be tough on crime at no expense to the taxpayer.



Just another of the ways that our society is becoming more stratified along economic lines.  We must speak out.