A recent study into Alabama’s system of court fees and fines showed a growing majority go unpaid, creating budget shortfalls and an incentive structure bent toward prosecutions.

The study from MDRC Center for Criminal Justice Research, found inequities in debt burdens from court fees, with black Alabamians found to be issued higher legal financial obligations, on average, than their white counterparts for the same charges.....

.....Published this week, the study analyzed tens of thousands of non-public documents made available by the court systems in Jefferson County from between 2015 and 2019.  Interviews were conducted with nearly 1,000 individuals who had interacted with the court system.

Among the initial findings was how frequently court fines, which in Jefferson County are increased by 30% if late by 90 days, remain unpaid indefinitely.

“One thing we noticed is that the most common amount of money that people pay is zero, and so that was a big finding for me because for my quantitative brain, it just made me know this is real,” Sarah Picard, co-founder of the project and director at MDRC, told ADN.....

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