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Court-Issued Fines And Fees Frequently Undermine Health Equity

Court-Issued Fines And Fees Frequently Undermine Health Equity

February 2, 2022Kathleen NoonanHealth AffairsSocial Determinants of Health (SDOH)

In March 2015, the Civil Rights Division of the US Department of Justice issued a scathing report on policing practices in Ferguson, Missouri, where Michael Brown, an 18-year-old Black man, had been shot and killed by police the year before. It described a police department that routinely issued citations to generate revenue for the city’s budget and a municipal court that authorized arrest warrants for non-criminal matters as a means of collecting payment.

For those living in or near poverty in Ferguson, the fines were exorbitant. Failing to obey an officer would incur a $792 fine, having high grass and weeds on your property generated a bill of $531, and “walking in the roadway” cost as much as $302. Those who couldn’t pay or misunderstood expectations about court appearances faced additional fines or even arrests. One woman who had two unpaid parking tickets, initially totaling $151 spent six days in jail. When her fines and fees were tallied, the woman, who had experienced periods of homelessness, owed $1,091.

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: health equity

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