While the main purpose of this article is to give you insight into the cost of a jury trial, there is also a damning message that the true cost of not going to court is very problematic for our clients and something we need to address urgently. The Supreme Court has ruled that “punishing a person for his poverty” is unconstitutional. Nevertheless, states and municipalities continue to imprison large numbers of destitute defendants as punishment for unpaid criminal justice debts. Imprisoning people for non-payment is by far the most expensive method of enforcing debt collection and generates little or no income, making it very unprofitable. In counties where courts imprison for non-payment, the authors found that the cost of incarceration dwarfed other recovery costs. For example, prison costs in Bernalillo County, New Mexico, account for up to 98% of the collection costs documented by the authors. footnote8_nhufm5p 8 New Mexico collects case-level data provided by the New Mexico Division of Judicial Information. Cost data derived from a combination of forensic observations, investigations and loan analyses (see Appendix B: Methodology). This high level of uncollected debt shows why fees and fines are such an unreliable way to generate revenue.

It also harms those who cannot pay, exposing them to the risk of imprisonment, loss of legal ability to drive, disenfranchisement and increased difficulties in finding employment. And the courts keep a constant eye on debts, making it nearly impossible for defendants to get out among them. We all know that going to court is not really cheap. Many fees and expenses go into the process. Contingency fees, contingency fees, and other fees can naturally cause a lot of stress when someone is considering going to court. In order to offer our clients the best chance of a fair trial, we choose to handle cases on a contingency fee basis. Evaluation. As used in this report, the rating refers to the amount of fees or fines that a judge imposes on a criminal accused upon conviction. For many minor offences, assessments are made at the end of a simple hearing before a judge or judge, where the defendant pleads guilty, evidence is reviewed, and a decision is made by the judge or magistrate. More complex and serious criminal cases may involve separate appearances, including an indictment in which the indictment is read and a defendant`s plea is accepted by the judge, a trial before the judge (and possibly a jury), and a verdict hearing where fees and fines can be imposed by the judge. On average, jurisdictions covered by this report spent more than $0.41 for every dollar raised during the study period. Due to the lack of available data, this figure only takes into account court and prison costs.

footnote1_16pjxhs 1 This estimate is necessarily conservative. The authors were unable to estimate a number of costs, such as time spent by law enforcement, VDD staff, probation and probation officers, etc. If all costs were measured, including the significant cost of prosecution for warrant execution and arrests, the cost of Department of Motor Vehicle (DMV) offices processing suspended licenses, and the costs of probation officers complying with fees and fines footnote2_z838h3i 2 Bannon et al., Criminal Justice Debt. — it would be even higher. footnote3_6bdzhs6 3 Ibid. The courts rely excessively on penalties and fines that are costly and ineffective, impose an unfair burden on the poor, and do little to deter crime or improve public safety. Reforms are urgently needed. In this way, criminal debt represents a significant obstacle to a person`s chances of successfully reintegrating into society after conviction. It also harms the families of detainees by depriving them of an employee, while the criminal debts of the accused are added to new legal costs. One study found that about half of families whose members have been convicted cannot afford to pay fees and fines. In addition, nearly two out of three families where a family member was detained were unable to meet their basic household needs, such as food and shelter.

footnote15_og55o1d 15 Ella Baker Center for Human Rights et al., The True Cost of Incarceration on Families, September 2015, 7-9, ellabakercenter.org/sites/default/files/downloads/who-pays.pdf. States like Florida that suspend driver`s licenses due to unpaid fees and fines only exacerbate these economic hardships, as those who lose their driver`s licenses can then lose their jobs, as well as their ability to take family members to school or doctor and go to court themselves. Jurisdictions differ depending on whether the specific costs are considered “court fees”. Most court fees are set by federal or state laws, though courts may offer clarification on the standard if the legal provision is ambiguous, confusing, or controversial. For example, Section 102.020 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure provided that felons convicted of certain crimes had to pay $250 in court fees to cover the cost of DNA records. In considering this article, the Texas Court of Appeals in Peraza v.