Ensuring that People Are Not Jailed Due to Poverty: Reforming Policies and Representing Clients in Criminal Justice Debt Ability to Pay Proceedings.

May 22, 2018

The Constitution prohibits jailing defendants for non-payment of debts they cannot afford but too often courts fail to conduct adequate “ability to pay” proceedings and unrepresented individuals are sent to jail simply because they are too poor to pay a fee. This webinar discusses both effective representation of individuals in ability to pay proceedings and best practices for ability to pay determinations that advocates should promote in policy reform.

Speakers:

Karly Jo Dixon, Texas Fair Defense Project

Sharon Brett, Criminal Justice Policy Program at Harvard Law SchoolBrittany Stonesifer, Legal Services for Prisoners with Children

Moderator: Abby Shafroth, NCLC