Population Health
August 14, 2019
Court-imposed fees and fines may create a cycle of poverty and incarceration
New research from the University of Washington’s School of Public Health supports the argument that court-imposed fees and fines may keep the most vulnerable people ensnared in a vicious cycle of poverty and incarceration.
The researchers found that, among a group of adults experiencing homelessness in the Seattle area, people with outstanding legal debt spent two more years without stable housing than those without legal debt.