Legal Financial Obligations: A Multi-state Legal Analysis

• In Event: Multi-State Study of Monetary Sanctions

Abstract

Legal financial obligations (LFOs) are a key feature of the contemporary criminal justice system in the United States. Previous research shows how LFOs – fines, fees, surcharges, assessments, and restitution imposed by courts – both widen the net of, and intensify entanglements with, the criminal justice system. Yet, little scholarship assesses how variation in the structure of LFO systems complicate the re-entry process and national policy reform. This panel examines the laws and policies governing LFOs in nine states and considers how the institutional structure of monetary sanctions may influence prospects for successful re-entry and re-integration among ex-offenders.

Author

• Bryan L Sykes, University of California-Irvine