Fines and Fees Justice Center
| Established | 2018 |
|---|---|
| Mission | As a national center for advocacy, information, and collaboration, FFJC’s goal is to eliminate fees in the justice system and to ensure that fines are equitably imposed and enforced. |
| Co-Founders | Judge Lisa Foster (ret.) and Joanna Weiss |
| Location | |
| Address | 185 W Broadway Suite C538, New York, NY 10013 |
| Website | www.finesandfeesjusticecenter.org |
The Fines and Fees Justice Center is a non-partisan nonprofit advocacy organization in the United States.[1][2][3] The Center's national office is located at New York Law School in New York City.[4]
The Center's stated mission is to "eliminate fees in the justice system and to ensure that fines are equitably imposed and enforced." To accomplish this goal, the Center adheres to a three-part strategy: "developing a replicable advocacy model for comprehensive state-based reform, creating a national Clearinghouse to provide information about reform efforts in all 50 states, and providing support for reform efforts around the country."[5]
The Fines and Fees Justice Center was founded in early 2018 by Judge Lisa Foster (ret.) and Joanna Weiss. Judge Foster was a California Superior Court Judge in San Diego for ten years and a former Director of the Office for Access to Justice at the United States Department of Justice.[6][7] Judge Foster helped draw national attention to fines and fees when she co-authored the Department of Justice’s “Dear Colleague” letter to State Court Administrators and Chief Justices.[8] The letter was later rescinded by Attorney General Jeff Sessions.[9][10] Joanna Weiss was the Director of Criminal Justice at the Laura and John Arnold Foundation and previously worked in the Office of the Criminal Justice Coordinator in the New York City Mayor's office.[11][12]
Activities[edit]
New York fines and fees campaign[edit]
The Fines and Fees Justice Center launched an advocacy campaign to eliminate fees and reform the imposition of fines in New York State.[13][14] In particular, the Center advocates for the abolition of the state’s mandatory surcharge that applies to criminal convictions, an end to the practice of suspending driver’s licenses for unpaid fines and fees, and a statutory cap on the amount of revenue that municipalities can raise from fines.[15]
In New York City, the Fines and Fees Justice Center joined a coalition that successfully advocated for an end to jail phone fees, making New York City the first American jurisdiction to guarantee free phone calls for people incarcerated in city jails.[16] The Center’s Co-Director Joanna Weiss has also testified about the impacts of criminal justice fees before New York City Council’s Committee on the Justice System.[17]
Florida fines and fees campaign[edit]
The Fines and Fees Justice Center launched an advocacy campaign to reform fines and fees practices in Florida.[18]
Fines and fees Clearinghouse[edit]
The Fines and Fees Justice Center’s website includes a fines and fees Clearinghouse, a library of information about efforts to reform fines and fees in the legal system.[19][20]
Support hub for fines and fees reform efforts[edit]
The Fines and Fees Justice Center supports fines and fees reform efforts outside of its state campaigns, providing strategic advising to other jurisdictions and connecting individuals and organizations to resources. In particular, the Center is a member of the Chicago Fines, Fees, and Access Collaborative, a task force composed of city government agencies, nonprofits, and research institutions that will examine the impacts of Chicago fines and fees and suggest potential reforms.[21]
Additionally, the Center files amicus briefs in support of litigation that advances fines and fees reform. For instance, Judge Foster and Joanna Weiss co-authored an amicus brief alongside the American Civil Liberties Union, R Street Institute, and the Southern Poverty Law Center for Supreme Court case Timbs v. Indiana.[22][23]
References[edit]
- ↑ Oppel, Richard A. (July 4, 2018). "Being Poor Can Mean Losing a Driver's License. Not Anymore in Tennessee". New York Times. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
- ↑ Sanchez, Melissa; Ramos, Elliott (November 14, 2018). "Chicago City Council Approves Modest First Reforms on Ticketing and Debt". ProPublica Illinois and WBEZ. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
- ↑ Green, Emily (November 9, 2018). "Unpaid fine? The poorer you are, the more you owe". Street Roots News. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
- ↑ New York Law School. "New York Law School Expands Its Public Interest Profile". New York Law School. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
- ↑ "Our Vision and Our Work". Fines and Fees Justice Center. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
- ↑ "Former Director Lisa Foster". United States Department of Justice Archives. United States Department of Justice. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
- ↑ "Lisa Foster, Co-Director". Fines and Fees Justice Center. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
- ↑ Zapotosky, Matt (March 14, 2016). "Justice Department warns local courts about unlawful fines and fees". Washington Post. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
- ↑ Zapotosky, Matt (December 21, 2017). "Sessions rescinds Justice Dept. letter asking courts to be wary of stiff fines and fees for poor defendants". Washington Post. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
- ↑ Foster, Lisa (January 9, 2018). "Jeff Sessions has endorsed an unconstitutional fine on the poor". Washington Post. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
- ↑ "Research team releases first systemic review of state and local monetary sanctions laws". Laura and John Arnold Foundation. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
- ↑ "Joanna Weiss". Fines and Fees Justice Center. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
- ↑ "New York Campaign". Fines and Fees Justice Center. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
- ↑ Foster, Lisa; Weiss, Joanna (June 8, 2018). "American courts should not be turned into revenue machines". The Hill. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
- ↑ Bayles, Cara (December 2, 2018). "NYC Bar To Lawmakers: End Criminal Court Fees". Law360. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
- ↑ Holmes, Brandon; Weiss, Joanna (April 22, 2018). "City Must Stop Using Incarcerated People as Revenue Source". Gotham Gazette. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
- ↑ Klein, Cassidy (October 9, 2018). "Lancman leads hearing to examine 'cost of justice' in criminal cases". Times Ledger. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
- ↑ "Florida Campaign". Fines and Fees Justice Center. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
- ↑ "National Clearinghouse on Fines and Fees Launches". Laura and John Arnold Foundation. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
- ↑ Sanchez, Melissa; Ramos, Elliott (December 6, 2018). "Chicago Task Force Will Take on Ticket and Debt Collection Reform". ProPublica Illinois and WBEZ. p. 572. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
- ↑ Sanchez, Melissa; Ramos, Elliott (December 6, 2018). "Chicago Task Force Will Take on Ticket and Debt Collection Reform". ProPublica Illinois and WBEZ. p. 572. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
- ↑ Vogt, RJ (December 2, 2018). "Justices' Jokes In Seized SUV Row Have Advocates Grinning - Law360". Law360. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
- ↑ "Friend-of-the-Court Briefs Stack up Against the State In U.S. Supreme Court's Timbs Excessive Fines Clause Case". Institute for Justice. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
External Links[edit]
https://finesandfeesjusticecenter.org
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