On July 28, 2016, the Massachusetts Senate Committee on Post Audit and Oversight, chaired by Sen. Michael Barrett (D-Lexington) held a hearing to look into the fines and fees assessed by our criminal justice system. Others on the panel were Sen. William Brownsberger (D-Belmont), Sen. Jason Lewis (D-Winchester), and Sen. James Eldridge (D-Acton).
Oral testimony, which was by invitation only, was given by the chief justice of the district court, the commissioner of probation, two former inmates, representatives from the department of corrections, the executive director of the parole board, Prisoners Legal Services (PLS), a criminologist, and our Chief Counsel.
Explaining to the committee that fines and fees are imposed as part of a defendant’s punishment or are collateral consequences that arise because of the person’s involvement with the court, Chief Counsel Benedetti outlined how assessments begin in court for bail, sex offender fees, DNA database charges, and special funds, continue through incarceration for things such as the maintenance of prisoners’ accounts and prisoners’ haircuts, and conclude with the imposition of probation and/or parole fees.
He told the committee, “The most troubling aspect of these monetary assessments is their disproportionate impact on the poor….people of color (African-American and Latinos), high school dropouts, and people suffering from mental illness or substance abuse…. They serve as a regressive form of punishment…. They impose large financial and human costs on the poor….causing them to often make difficult trade-offs between paying court debt and other necessary purchases.”
Quoting several reports, including one by the Brennan Center, the Chief Counsel highlighted how “court debt hobbles a person’s chances to reenter society successfully after conviction.” He continued, “It is undeniable that substantial legal debts pose a significant, and, at times, insurmountable barrier to persons as they attempt to reenter society. They see their incomes reduced, their credit ratings worsen, their prospects for housing and employment dim, and their chances of ending up back in jail or prison escalate.”
Before closing, he relayed a number of our attorneys’ experiences, including how not paying fines or fees can lead to the issuance of default warrants against our clients and their being held; how some judges insist that our attorneys collect the counsel fee, which can cause clients to view attorneys as part of the system and not there for them; how some courts hold cases till the end of the list so the fees can be chased down, which results in wasted time for the attorney and, in turn, the Commonwealth and taxpayers; how assessing our juvenile clients makes little sense, since they are almost always indigent, especially in cases where the complaining party is the parent; how some judges threaten to remove counsel unless the fee is paid; and how most of our clients have mental health issues or are substance users, making the payment of fines or fees or their payment by community service difficult, if not impossible.
After four and a half hours of testimony and questions from the panel, the hearing came to a close. Senator Barrett told those still present that the investigation into fees and fines would continue; from what he had heard he believed the course to follow would be to amend current statutes; and he asked CPCS and PLS to assist the committee by sending them proposals for legislative changes.
WGBH News article by Mike Deehan can be found here.