There’s a hidden side to our justice system — one that punishes people not for what they did, but for what they don’t have. Across the country, states are using their courts to squeeze revenue from the people least able to provide it. This isn’t a glitch in the system. It’s a feature — a deliberate choice to treat courts like collection agencies, especially in Black and brown communities. 

Research has shown that areas with higher concentrations of people of color are assessed fines and fees at higher rates than predominantly white areas. And the result? A cascade of economic, legal, and social consequences that can derail someone’s life.

These harms don’t fall evenly. They land hardest on people already living paycheck to paycheck. But it doesn’t have to be this way. Advocates can challenge the use of the legal system as a revenue stream — and demand fairer, more equitable alternatives.

Imposing Instability revealed how courts across the country continue to impose fines and fees not because it’s just, but because it’s lucrative, or at least it’s believed to be. Prioritizing revenue over justice creates instability in the lives of people who are already stretched thin. Courts won’t stop treating people like a revenue stream unless advocates and policymakers take action. 

Read full article Part 6 – Trapped by Design: How Court Debt Devastates Lives