The US inmates charged per night in jail

[think]

The US inmates charged per night in jail

By Jessica Lussenhop - Today

A widespread practice in the US known as "pay to stay" charges jail inmates a daily fee while they are incarcerated. For those who are in and out of the local county or city lock-ups - particularly those struggling with addiction - that can lead to sky-high debts.

David Mahoney is $21,000 (£13,650) in debt. Not from credit cards. Not from school loans.

He's accumulated the massive tab because of the days he spent locked up in the local jail in Marion, Ohio, which is a small town with a major heroin epidemic. Mahoney, a lanky 41-year-old, has struggled with addiction since he was a teenager, eventually stealing to fuel his habit. He got caught a lot, even burgling the same bar twice.

~Snip~

It comes from a daily "pay-to-stay" fee - sometimes called "pay for stay" - that he was charged by the local jail, the Multi-County Correctional Center. He was charged $50 each day he spent in jail, plus a $100 booking fee. It works almost as if he checked into a hotel and got a bill when he checked out...



Full article:
http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-34705968

[eppur_se_muova]

1. If people are jailed for the supposed good of society, society should foot the bill.

People are not jailed for their own benefit, and owe nothing for the expense.

[NonMetro]

2. This is something that should never have happened.

They're putting these people in hopeless debt, hounding and harassing them for years beyond their sentences, and preventing them from ever getting back up again. It's criminal - and the sad part is, those "good people" who made this policy will never have to spend a day in jail themselves!

[hifiguy]

3. Slavery through the back door.

Sickening.

[jwirr]

9. Good description. Many prisoners are released during the day

to go to a job. It is called work release that is used to pay for the cost of their stay. There is also the problem that when the prisoner uses the work release pay - does his family get any of the money or are they forced to go to welfare for help?

[malaise]

13. +1,000

No words

[justhanginon]

4. So, if he cannot pay the $35,000 I guess they will turn it over

to a bill collector who will then go to court and get a judgement against him which him being an addict he probably will not be able to pay. The beauty of it is they can then send him back to jail for non-payment and charge him $50 a day and on and on and on ..... God bless murica!

[davidn3600]

5. That's how it is in this country

The justice system becomes a revolving door.

And there are a lot of entities and people that make a profit from the justice system. Once you get into the system, it's difficult and very expensive to get out of it.

[Gidney N Cloyd]

6. When did incarceration get so fucked up in this country?

I know it's naive but on the old Andy Griffith show the fines were "10 dollars or 2 days."

[AZ Progressive]

7. So the bullies get more brazen and more brazen...

[Solly Mack]

8. K&R

FUBAR

[petronius]

10. That's an absolutely despicable practice, and it should be illegal... (nt)

[nomorenomore08]

11. How stingy can a person (or government entity) get?

This would be laughable if it weren't so damaging to a lot of folks...

[Sunlei]

12. Only a 3% collection rate & 70% of that goes to the 'for profit' called 'Intellitech Corporation'

The sum that is able to be collected doesn't go straight into the county coffers, either - the jail contracts with a company called Intellitech Corporation, which acts as a collections agent, sending letters and making phone calls to former inmates. If the debtor sends a check to Intellitech or arranges a payment plan with them, 30% of the money goes to the county and 70% goes to Intellitech

Thank you BBC & ACLU, if not for you two, I don't think Americans would ever know about this.