From a report written by lawyers who represent poor people in Ferguson’s municipal courts:
“[T]he current policies adopted by the municipal court system lead to the impression of the courts and municipalities [in St. Louis County] as racist institutions that care much more about collecting money — generally from poor, black residents — than about dispensing justice.
“Clients reported being jailed for the inability to pay fines, losing jobs and housing as result of the incarceration, being refused access to the Courts if they were with their children or other family members, and being mistreated by the bailiffs, prosecutors, clerks and judges in the courts.”
“Many residents feel that the police and the courts target black residents and try to find something to fine them for.”
“[D]efendants are frequently ordered to pay fines that are frequently triple their monthly income.”
“Many residents think that the goal of the municipal courts is to collect fine revenue, not to dispense justice.”
“He then described the startlingly common experience of being instructed to call everybody he could think of who might have money to pay his fine — with the promise of three or four days in jail if he could not find somebody with enough money.”
“[M]any defendants complained about the cold lack of consideration given to their circumstances and needs.”
“One defendant described being incarcerated fifteen or sixteen times over a decade on the same municipal charge.”
“In 2013, the Ferguson Municipal Court disposed of 24,532 warrants and 12,018 cases, or about 3 warrants and 1.5 cases per household.
According to a court employee, the docket for an average court session may include as many as 1,500 cases.”
“[A] Ferguson court employee reported that the bench routinely starts hearing cases 30 minutes before the appointed time and then locks the doors to the building as early as five minutes after the official hour, a practice that could easily lead a defendant arriving even slightly
late to receive an additional charge [of $125] for failure to appear.”
https://www.dropbox.com/s/vwptqn3mhq9xvy7/ArchCity%20Defenders%20Municipal%20Courts%20Whitepaper.pdf
“So what happens to all that cash? In Ferguson, as in thousands of municipalities across the country, it goes toward paying city officials, funding city services, and otherwise keeping the wheels of local government turning. In fact, fines and court fees are the city’s second-largest revenue source.”
I would riot, too, if I had to live under a city government like this. These courts are nothing but ATM machines for the city. I’d like to see a federal judge put Ferguson’s and all the rest of St. Louis County’s municipal courts under federal court supervision. The local judges and prosecutors running these kangaroo courts have demonstrated their unfitness to manage something as simple as collecting traffic fines. It’s time to send them to the “time out” corner. The racist nature of municipal law enforcement in Ferguson and surrounding communities provides ample grounds for a federal civil rights lawsuit.