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Full-Text Articles in Courts
Judicial Elections, Public Opinion, And Their Impact On State Criminal Justice Policy, Travis N. Taylor
Judicial Elections, Public Opinion, And Their Impact On State Criminal Justice Policy, Travis N. Taylor
Theses and Dissertations--Political Science
This dissertation explores whether and how the re-election prospects faced by trial court judges in many American states influence criminal justice policy, specifically, state levels of incarceration, as well as the disparity in rates of incarceration for Whites and Blacks. Do states where trial court judges must worry about facing reelection tend to encourage judicial behavior that results in higher incarceration rates? And are levels of incarceration and racial disparities in the states influenced by the proportion of the state publics who want more punitive policies? These are clearly important questions because they speak directly to several normative and empirical …
Eliminating The Criminal Debt Exception For Debtors' Prison, Cortney E. Lollar
Eliminating The Criminal Debt Exception For Debtors' Prison, Cortney E. Lollar
Law Faculty Scholarly Articles
Although the exact number is unknown due to poor documentation, the data available suggests nearly a quarter of the current incarcerated population is detained due to a failure to pay their legal financial obligations. In federal courts alone, the amount of criminal legal debt owed to the U.S. government in fiscal year 2017 totaled more than $27 billion, and to third parties, more than $96 billion, not including interest. In 2004, approximately sixty-six percent of all prison inmates were assessed a fine or fee as part of their criminal sentence.4 Not surprisingly, legal financial obligations disproportionately impact poor defendants and …