The city of Ferguson, Mo., announced yesterday that it has withdrawn all of its arrest warrants issued before 2015--a total of about 10,000 warrants. It sounds like a game changer, considering how much controversy Ferguson’s municipal court system has drawn since the death of Michael Brown last year. But in some ways, the city was forced into the decision. A new state law, set to take effect this Friday, drastically limits the revenue municipal courts in St. Louis County can collect. Using funds from court and traffic fines, small Missouri cities have long been able to keep themselves afloat. Facing arrest or even jail, people with warrants hanging over them are compelled to pay extraordinary fees for simple civil infractions, which only multiply when they are not paid. The Department of Justice found the use of warrants in Ferguson to be “staggering.” http://fus.in/1fEWGpt http://bit.ly/1fJ5yqZ This video was produced by Wochit using http://wochit.com
8/25/15
New Law Drives Ferguson to Drop 10,000 Arrest Warrants
The city of Ferguson, Mo., announced yesterday that it has withdrawn all of its arrest warrants issued before 2015--a total of about 10,000 warrants. It sounds like a game changer, considering how much controversy Ferguson’s municipal court system has drawn since the death of Michael Brown last year. But in some ways, the city was forced into the decision. A new state law, set to take effect this Friday, drastically limits the revenue municipal courts in St. Louis County can collect. Using funds from court and traffic fines, small Missouri cities have long been able to keep themselves afloat. Facing arrest or even jail, people with warrants hanging over them are compelled to pay extraordinary fees for simple civil infractions, which only multiply when they are not paid. The Department of Justice found the use of warrants in Ferguson to be “staggering.” http://fus.in/1fEWGpt http://bit.ly/1fJ5yqZ This video was produced by Wochit using http://wochit.com
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