Melissa Daniels' news story “Pa. courts finding success in collecting fees online” notes that Pennsylvania courts are having new success at wringing money from criminal defendants by directing them online to pay court costs. Unfortunately, the PAePay website fails to inform visitors who can't afford to pay about their right to seek to have court costs reduced or waived.
It should: Courts should inform people about their rights, not merely persecute them. The story mentions that “Defendants who don't pay fines on time can have their driver's license suspended” — precisely the type of counterproductive penalty that makes it impossible for low-income defendants to get to the jobs they need in order to pay their court costs.
A recent NPR investigation described a nationwide epidemic of people forced deeper into poverty and unemployment by court fees they can't afford; our courts should fight that trend, not exacerbate it. Pennsylvania counties ought to follow Philadelphia's lead and waive old, uncollectable bail judgments, but meanwhile, the courts — which have a conflict of interest, since they're funded by these same fees — should help people modify costs they can't pay and work out reasonable payment plans for the rest.
Brendan Lynch
The writer is an attorney in Philadelphia.
