Poverty Penalties and Poverty Traps

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Below are the poverty penalties and poverty traps that meet your search criteria. Many include a See related provisions prompt which searches our database for laws that may pertain to your result.

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State Statute Description/Statute Name Statutory language Type of poverty penalty or poverty trap Level of offense Mandatory
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Florida Fla. Stat. §948.06(5) Violation of probation or community control; revocation; modification; continuance; failure to pay restitution or cost of supervision

In any hearing in which the failure of a probationer or offender in community control to pay restitution or the cost of supervision as provided in s. 948.09, as directed,

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is established by the state, if the probationer or offender asserts his or her inability to pay restitution or the cost of supervision, it is incumbent upon the probationer or offender to prove by clear and convincing evidence that he or she does not have the present resources available to pay restitution or the cost of supervision despite sufficient bona fide efforts legally to acquire the resources to do so. If the probationer or offender cannot pay restitution or the cost of supervision despite sufficient bona fide efforts, the court shall consider alternate measures of punishment other than imprisonment. Only if alternate measures are not adequate to meet the state's interests in punishment and deterrence may the court imprison a probationer or offender in community control who has demonstrated sufficient bona fide efforts to pay restitution or the cost of supervision.

Incarceration All Yes
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Florida Fla. Stat. §938.30(2) Financial obligations in criminal cases; supplementary proceedings

The court may require a person liable for payment of an obligation to appear and be examined under oath concerning the person’s financial ability to pay the obligation. The judge

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may convert the statutory financial obligation into a court-ordered obligation to perform community service, subject to the provisions of s. 318.18(8), after examining a person under oath and determining the person’s inability to pay. Any person who fails to attend a hearing may be arrested on warrant or capias issued by the clerk upon order of the court.

Incarceration All No
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Florida Fla. Stat. §901.11 Effect of not answering summons

Failure to appear as commanded by a summons without good cause is an indirect criminal contempt of court and may be punished by a fine of not more than $100.

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When a person fails to appear as commanded by a summons, the trial court judge shall issue a warrant. If the trial court judge acquires reason to believe that the person summoned will not appear as commanded after issuing a summons, the trial court judge may issue a warrant.

Incarceration All No
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Florida Fla. Stat. §951.16 Prisoners entitled to receive credit on fine based on imprisonment

Every person who may be imprisoned in the county jail for failure to pay a fine and costs, or either, under sentence imposed upon conviction for crime shall be entitled

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to receive, together with subsistence, a credit on such fine and costs, or either, as the case may be, in proportion to the time such person may be imprisoned.

Incarceration All Yes
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Florida Fla. Stat. §922.04 Discharge of prisoner unable to pay fine

When the court determines on the written application of a prisoner that he or she has been imprisoned for 60 days solely for failure to pay a fine or costs

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which total not more than $300 and that the prisoner is indigent and unable to pay the fine or costs, the court shall order the prisoner discharged from custody.

Incarceration All Yes
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Vermont Vt. Stat. Ann. tit. 13 § 7180(4)(b) Remedies for failure to pay fines, costs, surcharges, and penalties

(4)  Contempt. (A) The court may conclude that the defendant is in contempt if the court finds that: (i) the defendant knew or reasonably should have known that he or she

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owed the amount due; (ii) the defendant had the ability to pay all or any portion of the amount due; and (iii) the defendant failed to pay all or any portion of the amount due.

(B) If the court concludes that the defendant is in contempt, the court may: (i) Order payment of the amount due on a specific date. (ii) Assess an additional penalty not to exceed ten percent of the amount due. (iii) Direct that the matter be reported to one or more designated credit bureaus. The Court Administrator or the Court Administrator's designee is authorized to contract with one or more credit bureaus for the purpose of reporting information about unpaid Judicial Bureau judgments. (iv)  Refer to Small Claims Court for the purpose of issuing writs of attachment for property and trustee process pursuant to 12 V.S.A. § 5534. Filing fees shall be waived in such cases. (v) Sentence the defendant to serve a term of imprisonment on furlough to participate in a program supervised by the Department of Corrections pursuant to 28 V.S.A. § 808(a) that provides reparation to the community in the form of supervised work activities. For each day the defendant participates in supervised work activities, the defendant shall be given credit against the amount owed at the hourly rate for minimum wage. A defendant who is determined by the Department of Corrections to be ineligible for the preapproved furlough supervised work program may be ordered by the court to serve a sentence in a correctional facility, in which event the defendant shall be given credit against the amount owed for every day served at a rate determined by the court.

Incarceration, Increased fine, Property liens, Work program/jail industry program All No