Debtors Prison

The words "Debtors Prison" conjures up a vision of dark Dickensian places where people are thrown for owing money until their family can come up with enough to spring them out. Of course, these types of prisons are a thing of the distant past.... except, they ARE NOT.

Cindy (not her real name), a friend, and a participant in Church for All People music programs and small groups, was just thrown in jail for 30 days. Her crime is that she had not paid child support money owed to the state.

Cindy is just a lovely person and has become a good friend. She is African American, and just turned 50 last week. She is friendly, open hearted and very up front and honest about her own sins. She is now sober after many years of crack cocaine use. She is actively participating in just about every kind of support group she can and attends worship every Sunday. She seems to me to be trying to completely turn her life around.

The child in question is almost 18 and Cindy gave her up to her Aunt because she felt she could not care for her when she was homeless and addicted. She says she made the right choice. I think we'd all agree.

Cindy is a felon. She was arrested on a first-time crack possession charge and put in the penitentiary. She got out in 2003 or thereabouts. This makes it almost impossible for her to find work. She has no transportation other than the bus. Many bonded positions where she might work are so far away from where she has managed to find housing, that she cannot apply there. She has a sporadic job she recently obtained cleaning and stripping floors for someone who owns some properties. She brought documentation of this to her court appearance today.

Cindy had not shown up the last time the court required her to come to Springfield. She called and told her Aunt, who has custody of her child, that she had no way to get there. She assumed that her Aunt would tell the court and, of course, the court doesn't care what you told your Aunt.

She received a summons and threat of warrant. When Cindy told me about this I told her I would drive her to Springfield today, hoping to keep her out of jail. She knew she might get thrown in jail, though. I foolishly believed that the court would see that logical thing to do would be to allow Cindy to work her job and actually make payments on this debt.

On the way to the court appearance we talked about the cycle of poverty and trying to get work as a felon. She only had the one drug possession offense and could probably have it expunged, but it would cost around $500 or more. This is one of many examples of how money makes our whole courts system different experiences for the poor and the rich.

You should first absolutely throw out any image you have of our court system that comes from television. After several encounters with the so-called justice system in Franklin County and now Clark County I have to say that there is little portrayed on television about our courts that is even close to reality.

Cindy had a public defender today. The woman never talked to Cindy at all and didn't even sit near her. In fact, Cindy didn't even see her until she was seated before the judge. The Defender simply read aloud from Cindy's file. She actually never even looked at Cindy. I was not allowed to speak on Cindy's behalf or even speak at all. The "Public Defender" had already decided what she was requesting from the court without consulting Cindy at all about what she might like to see happen or about any details of her situation. There was absolutely no consultation whatsoever and no representation.

I learned that Cindy owes almost $30,000 and only a payment right then of $800 would prevent her going to jail. The judge asked Cindy about employment but then cut her off as she tried to explain about the job she has. He wasn't interested in the documentation she had brought. The job is through informal channels, like most work for felons, so it "doesn't count" and the courts won't trust it.

The entire thing lasted about five minutes. At the end the sheriff clapped handcuffs on Cindy and led her away. I was not allowed to speak to her or see her again. I tried to ask a question of the judge. He clearly had no respect for me and treated me with condescension. I was apparently "tarnished" by association.

Taxpayers will pay about $100 per day to keep Cindy in jail at a cost of $3,000. She may now lose her job. She surely will feel discouraged and find it that much harder to do the right thing next time and appear when called at court. Better to stay under the radar and hope to not get picked up because, for Cindy, $800 might as well be $10,000. And $30,000? She will never, if she works the rest of her life, be able to pay that off because she cannot get a job that pays more than the minimum expenses of housing and food. She is forever incarcerated and marginalized by her debt.

Now, you might say Cindy made her own bed and now she has to lie in it. This is, of course, true. Cindy was a crack addict for many years and has not made a payment toward child support since 2003. She has only been cleaned up for a few short months. On the other hand, putting her in jail does not improve the chances of her ever restarting her child support payments. The judge's clerk told me that society ends up paying assistance for the child and so it is right to punish those who don't pay child support. But of course, this punishment only furthers the taxpayer burden and delays her ability to pay.

Upon coming home I tried to get information about how to stay in touch with Cindy and whether I can bring her anything. She can have one visitor a week for 30 minutes during prescribed hours. I am not allowed to bring her anything except 3 magazines, including underwear which she must BUY from the jail. No books and she can't keep her bible because it is a hard covered book. I can put money into an account for her to help her pay for underwear and small comforts. Once again -- if you have money, the road is a little easier, even in jail.

In past reports I've told you about other experiences with the Franklin County jail, which is now looking very progressive to me since I could actually bring people socks and underwear and they could have one visitor each day of visiting hours. You can languish there for a week or two before you are arraigned and then a month or two before they even hear your case. You are pretty much guilty until proven innocent because you are in jail until the courts get around to you. You'll serve time no matter what.

Many of the cases I've encountered here in Columbus stem from unpaid traffic violations, followed by skipping courtroom appearances. Then someone is stopped for something else and thrown in jail for outstanding warrants.

Our "Criminal Justice" system is nothing more or less than a criminal PUNISHMENT system of retribution. With a few small exceptions it offers no drug rehabilitation or counseling to change anyone's life. When people are released from prison they are branded as a felon and cannot, for all practical purposes, work at anything like a regular job. When people are in jail for shorter term misdemeanors they frequently lose any job they had by the time they get out.

The cycle of poverty and so called "justice" grinds and grinds and grinds the poor until they are dust. I have said before, but I'll say again -- it is a MIRACLE when people can lift themselves out of this cycle. We point to these exceptions and say "See, he overcame his circumstances. Anyone can and should do this!" and we judge harshly those whose downward spiral is simply out of control.

On the way home from Springfield today I felt like a Psalmist. I wept and railed at God. Why do the rich prosper and the poor are ground into the dirt? Why can't we have real justice and rehabilitation? Why would we rather pay $3,000 to put Cindy in jail rather than spend that money to help give her a new start in life? job training? drug counseling? expunge her record so she can work? And why do we make it almost impossible for ex-felons to find work - thus increasing their chances of breaking the law again? And why, oh why, in the year 2010 in the United States of America do we still have debtors prisons?

Jesus said that caring for the poor and visiting those in prison was a requirement for getting to heaven. It is one of the list of things that separates the "goats from the sheep" when God is judging us. (Matt:5) One version of the Lord's prayer says "Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors." I ask that you pray for Cindy and pray and work toward a more just prison and courts system in America.