Story
Lawmaker Urges Steps to Open Japanese Markets
A House Democratic leader on trade policy on Tuesday said the time is right to press Japan on its closed markets as Japan formally joins the United States and 10 …
Story
Radical Cleric Abu Qatada Released from Jail
A radical Islamist cleric described by prosecutors as a key al-Qaida operative in Europe was freed from prison Tuesday after a court ruled he cannot be deported from Britain to …
Story
Civil Rights
Will the U.S. Supreme Court Gut the Voting Rights Act?
Of the 11 states of the former Confederacy, number that passed voting restrictions since the 2010 election that would make it harder for minority citizens to cast ballots: 8
Story
Civil Rights
Trump: NFL Owners Fear Players as League Stresses Injustice
The NFL says the message players and teams are trying to express is being lost in a political firestorm.
Story
Art
Floating to Creativity
Because floatation therapy is designed to let an individual enter a deep state of relaxation, Jason and Jina Daniels think the practice can help artists boost their creativity.
Story
On Russia-Backed TV Network, Trump Doubts Russian Influence
Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump told a Russia-funded television network that "it's probably unlikely" that Russia is trying to influence the U.S. election.
Story
Gunmen Fire on L.A. Police Car
Two men opened fire on a police car patrolling a tough part of Los Angeles, but the two officers inside were not injured and one was able to shoot back, …
Story
Miss. Senator Says She Plans to Alter Iran Divestment Bill
A Mississippi state senator trying to curtail investments in Iran says she's reworking the bill over concerns that it could hurt the state's ability to work with automaker Toyota Motor …
Story
Person of the Day
Dr. John Hall
The American Heart Association presented Dr. John Hall of UMMC with the Award of Meritorious Achievement Wednesday, June 24.
Story
Jacksonian
Dr. Taunjah Bell Neasman
For psychology majors at Jackson State University, not many other professors have made a bigger impact than Dr. Taunjah Bell Neasman.
Story
Trump Reports for New York Jury Duty, Takes Campaign Break
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump took a break Monday from courting voters to go to court as a potential juror.
Entry
ACLU Challenges Debt Collection Practices That Target the Poor
By AnnaWolfeThe following is a verbatim press release from the American Civil Liberties Union.
ATLANTA – The American Civil Liberties Union today filed a federal lawsuit challenging debt collection practices that have resulted in the jailing of people simply because they are poor. The case was brought on behalf of Kevin Thompson, a black teenager in DeKalb County, Georgia, who was jailed because he could not afford to pay court fines and probation company fees stemming from a traffic ticket.
"Being poor is not a crime. Yet across the county, the freedom of too many people unfairly rests on their ability to pay traffic fines and fees they cannot afford," said Nusrat Choudhury, an attorney with the ACLU's Racial Justice Program. "We seek to dismantle this two-tiered system of justice that punishes the poorest among us, disproportionately people of color, more harshly than those with means."
The ACLU charges that DeKalb County and for-profit Judicial Correction Services Inc. (JCS) teamed up to engage in a coercive debt collection scheme that focuses on revenue generation at the expense of protecting poor people's rights.
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled more than 30 years ago that locking people up merely because they cannot afford to pay court fines is contrary to American values of fairness and equality embedded in the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The court made clear that judges cannot jail someone for failure to pay without first considering their ability to pay, efforts to acquire money, and alternatives to incarceration.
No such consideration was given to Thompson, who was locked up for five days because he could not afford to pay $838 in fines and fees to the county and JCS – despite the fact that he tried his best to make payments. The lawsuit charges that Thompson's constitutional rights to an indigency hearing and to counsel were violated by DeKalb County, JCS, and the chief judge of the local court that sentenced him to jail.
"What happened to me, and others like me who try their best to pay fines and fees but fall short, is unfair and wrong," said Thompson. "I hope this lawsuit will help prevent other people from being jailed just because they are poor."
These debt collection practices have had a devastating impact on people of color in the Atlanta metropolitan area. While blacks make up 54 percent of the DeKalb County population, nearly all probationers jailed by the DeKalb County Recorders Court for failure to pay are black – a pattern replicated by other Georgia courts.
"In a country where the racial wealth gap remains stark, the link between driving while black and jailed for being poor has a devastating impact on communities of color," said Choudhury.
The case, Thompson v. DeKalb County, was filed in U.S. District Court in Atlanta. It names DeKalb County, Chief Judge Nelly Withers of the DeKalb County Recorders Court, and Judicial Correction Services Inc. as defendants. Rogers & Hardin LLP, the ACLU of Georgia, and Southern Center for …
Story
Industry Denies High-Fructose Corn Syrup Unhealthy
The president of the Corn Refiners Association sent an e-mail to JFP contributing writer Brandi Herrera Phrem about her story "Healthy Holiday Eating," stating that "the suggestion that high fructose …
Story
[Mott] Feed Them On Your Dreams
Earlier this week, my friend Terry e-mailed me a link to a short film from 1947 called "The Secret Lives of Cats." Two things struck me as I watched: First …
Story
[Bounds] Communities Should Remain Calm but Vigilant
What your mother always told you is true: An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, especially when it comes to the flu. Media reports tell us that …
Story
U.S. Ready to Strike Back Against China Cyberattacks
As public evidence mounts that the Chinese military is responsible for stealing massive amounts of U.S. government data and corporate trade secrets, the Obama administration is eyeing fines and other …
Story
Just Gotta Brag on the iTodd a Little
AAN has posted a link to the survey responses from last year's Web conference in San Francisco. Yes, the Mississippi dude represented well. ;-)
Story
Natchez Trace Parkway Celebrates 75 Years
Saturday marks the paradoxical 75th anniversary of one of Natchez's oldest connections with civilization.
Story
Pentagon Forming Cyber Teams to Prevent Attacks
The Defense Department is establishing a series of cyber teams charged with carrying out offensive operations to combat the threat of an electronic assault on the United States that could …
Story
NSA Debate Pits Far Left, Right Against the Middle
Revelations of massive government collections of Americans' phone and email records have reinvigorated an odd-couple political alliance of the far left and right.
