Stories from the ACLU of Washington

The past few years have seen numerous attempts to reform the notorious Patriot Act and its problematic provisions which the NSA has interpreted to permit unprecedented dragnet surveillance. None have been successful, thanks in large part to the continued fearmongering of the “war on terror.”

No one should be locked up because they don’t have the money to buy their freedom. But this is the plight of countless men and women currently imprisoned in our immigration detention system.

How do you turn $41 into over $2,000?  Courts across Washington and throughout the U.S. have figured out how to turn small fines for routine traffic violations and other non-violent infractions into major debts for individuals without the means to pay.  HBO’s “Last Week Tonight” with John Oliver recently examined this subject, noting the ways in which differences in race and income levels are creating two justice systems: one for the rich and one for the poor.

The Washington Supreme Court has unanimously ruled that courts must take into consideration a defendant’s ability to pay before imposing discretionary legal financial obligations (LFOs). The ruling represents a significant step towards reforming a system that traps people in a cycle of poverty and incarceration.

Breanne Schuster went to college planning to be a doctor. But a pre-med class on the Evolution of Physiology at the University of Wisconsin helped change her mind.  “We got into disparities in health care based on race and income. I realized that’s what I wanted to do – policy work,” she recalled.