Disproportionate Justice: Monetary Sanctions

Date & Time: Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2015 at 6:30 pm
Location: Ullman Commons 101

Events across the county – and in Ferguson, Missouri, in particular – have sparked a national discussion about inequality and injustice in the United States. This event will shed light on one facet of the problem: the court fines and fees that are routinely and disproportionately given out at sentencing for municipal and felony violations. Guest speakers include sociologist Alexes Harris and civil rights attorney Thomas Harvey.

Harvey will discuss one of the nationally noted comprehensive analyses of these court practices and their lasting consequences in St. Louis County. These municipalities routinely and disproportionately stop, charge, fine and arrest the poor and people of color. Moreover, they unconstitutionally close courts to the public and incarcerate people for failure to make monetary payments without providing them counsel.

Harris, a sociologist at the University of Washington, will discuss her nationally recognized research and forthcoming book detailing the criminal sentencing practices of monetary sanctions that are increasingly imposed on people convicted of felonies across the United States. In courts nationwide, these types of monetary sanctions are resulting as a permanent punishment with dramatic consequences for individuals, directly impacting their ability to re-enter their communities, their economic and emotional well-being, and their future life chances.