Michigan has enacted new legislation that abolishes court fines and fees related to children’s proceedings.
The bipartisan initiative now eliminates the requirement for juveniles to pay for court-appointed counsel and detention, which makes up the majority of court fees, Bolts Mag reports. This legislation was developed by a coalition of children, advocates, and politicians in response to a report revealing that kids and their families often owed a median of $850 for reimbursement costs, including out-of-home placement, evaluations, and treatment.
The 2022 report, carried out by a statewide task force established by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, found that approximately 1 in 10 kids paid over $1,000. The task force discovered that youth were being charged attorney fees, leading many to waive their right to counsel or to plead quickly to avoid larger bills.
Arrianna Jentink-Bristol was among the juveniles who repaid the $800 in court debt just six months before turning 18. She received her first charge at age 13 after getting into a physical altercation with her mother, who was intoxicated and hitting her 3-year-old sister. Following her arrest, she faced an additional charge.
Jentink-Bristol could have completed her probation at 15 if she had settled her fines and fees. However, her probation officer informed her that she had to stay under supervision until her debt was cleared, which included costs for her public defenders, detention stays, and restitution to the victims of her offenses.
The experience left Jentink-Bristol feeling anxious, depressed, and confused.
“I had my mom yelling at me to pay these fines and fees. I had the court yelling at me to pay these fines and fees. As a kid, you don’t know what the heck is going on,” Jentink-Bristol, now 19, said.
She finally paid off her debt after receiving a stipend for participating in a university program where she shared her story. Jentink-Bristol then made a bold move to ensure that other kids wouldn’t face the same challenges and collaborated with other youth, advocates, and politicians to develop a series of bills to eliminate most fines and fees for juveniles in Michigan.
After the legislation was enacted on Oct. 1, children are still required to pay restitution to victims, but courts can no longer charge them for costs associated with their proceedings. The bills also have retroactive effects, eliminating any past debts incurred by kids and their families within the juvenile justice system. Additionally, judges are prohibited from incarcerating children due to court debt or for refusing to participate in community service.
“It was very relieving because I do have younger sisters… say they get wrapped up in that [system], they won’t be going through as much pain in a struggle as I was,” said Jentink-Bristol. “If that had happened while I was going through it, it would have saved me so much pain and suffering.”
With the bill’s enactment, Michigan became the most recent of 17 states to eliminate most fines and fees for children and 1 of 10 states to do so since 2021.
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