We’re Kathey and Rob Raskin of Las Vegas and we care about foster children in this country. California is looking to improve child care today.
The state is standing up to the current administration and becoming the first state to discontinue jailing poor children who can’t pay court fees and fines. The state will remove juvenile administrative fees completely as a way to protect low-income families and children from these “debtors’” prisons.
When youth are detained and cannot to pay administrative fees, they can be jailed. However, these fees enforce huge financial burdens on some of the country’s most helpless families, and create little to no income for the government.
The Justice Department is blocking repeal on a nationwide scale. Just prior to Christmas, Attorney General Sessions withdrew legal direction which advised state and local courts to minimize or eradicate juvenile fines and fees. While the federal government still stands in the way of juvenile justice reform, states can follow California’s lead and eliminate statewide fees and fines.
Currently, the majority of states still charge youth and parents administrative fees based on a variety of system expenses, such as detention, “free” and guaranteed legal representation, probation management, electronic monitoring, and drug testing. Administrative fees can be unbelievably substantial. In fact, the average probation term in Sacramento County costs families around $6,000.
Youth and families who don’t, or more accurately can’t, pay these fees can face severe penalties which, in addition to jail time, can include driver’s license suspension, civil judgments, a bar on sealing records, and lengthy stages of probation. One juvenile probation officer stated, “Most kids are living in poverty and are […] unable to pay […] fees. About 19 out of 70 kids could be off probation but […] these fees […] We are trying to get money from poor people by keeping them on probation.”
If children and families could afford these fees, they could maybe be defensible. However, several judges enforce fees on families without considering their ability to pay. A recent study exposed that a majority of states don’t have a judicial process in place to contemplate the child or family’s capability of paying supervision fees.
In fact, the only state which has hearings to determine a family’s capability of paying is Montana, but these hearings take place without the person’s right to counsel.
Children must be kept safe and out of prison, which can lead to foster placement and slew of other problems. On our Kathey and Rob Raskin Stop DHR webpage, you can report complaints regarding foster care and department issues. Do so today and do your part to encourage your state officials to give our children better care.