Americans often pay for their crimes twice — first with a prison sentence, then with a lifetime of debt many will never be able to escape.
Last year’s scathing Department of Justice report on Ferguson, drew national attention to shameful practices to extract revenue from our poorest citizens through inordinate fines for minor offenses such as traffic violations. But much less attention has been paid to fines and fees forced on those who are convicted of felonies, which plays a similarly destructive role in our society and erodes confidence in our justice system.
Read the full USA Today column