The $31,690 Johnny Melton received to settle a lawsuit over his mother’s death was going to help him start life anew after prison. But before he was released, after 15 months in prison for a drug conviction, the Illinois Department of Corrections sued Melton and won nearly $20,000 to cover the cost of his incarceration. When Melton was paroled earlier this year, he was forced to go to a homeless shelter, then was taken in by a cousin. He got food stamps. When he died in June, according to his family, he was destitute.
“He didn’t have a dime,” said one of Melton’s sisters, Denise Melton, of Chicago. “We had to scuffle up money to cremate him.” The lawsuit against Melton was one of a small but growing number of cases the prisons department brings each year against inmates to recoup the cost of their imprisonment, an effort intended to help fund operations that makes convicted felons feel a financial pinch for their crimes — in addition to the time they do.
The lawsuits, in some cases, target convicted murderers or sex offenders serving lengthy prison terms. Some inmates will never get out; others will be released when they are elderly. But many of the lawsuits target less serious offenders who have earned or come into relatively modest sums of money, whether through an inheritance, a trust fund or, as in Melton’s case, the settlement of a wrongful death lawsuit. Full Article
This is about the most disturbing article I’ve read. This is certainly an incentive to arrest and prosecute people. As everyone is aware, tax paying dollars fund these establishments.
Endless punishment. Kick them when they’re already down doing time. And then the public wonders why ex-felons are bitter, angry, and hostile. And what will the next step be? Maybe permanent tattoos on their foreheads listing their offenses?? Or will we “go full Sharia” on inmates and start cutting off body parts to satiate the public’s bloodlust for retribution?
Many people are read about law enforcement’s abuse of the drug offense property seizure laws. Apparently, LE is so thrilled by those revenues that they wish to extend the concept to all crimes.
And while we’re at it, lets go after whatever they have accumulated since their release. Why should they be able to own homes, travel, send their kids to college and etc.
[sarcasm]
Under California law, one’s civil servant pension is forfieted if one is convicted of a felony in the course of performing one’s job. (i.e., a State auditor taking a payoff, a public works employee stealing valuable tools or a generator, etc). Though it’s offensive to public sentiment, why should one’s pension be forfieted if the crime is NOT tied to one’s actual job duties/conduct? I haven’t heard about any such new laws being proposed for felony DUI manslaughter convictions….. because that “can happen to anyone and is a terrible & unfortunate accident”, right?
Over the past 20 years, authorities have made more than a quarter of a billion arrests, the Federal Bureau of Investigation estimates. As a result, the FBI currently has 77.7 million individuals on file in its master criminal database—or nearly one out of every three American adults.
Between 10,000 and 12,000 new names are added each day. Millions are in Jails, prisons or on probation, they make money on phones, extra food purchases etc, now they can do this.
Bottom line it has and always will be about the money the government can and will make off the American citizens, until the millions rise up it will keep going on.
Even in a state capital where more than 30 lawmakers have left office facing criminal charges or allegations of ethical misconduct since 2000, the case against Silver was an extraordinary turn. An assemblyman since 1976, Silver was one of Albany’s most storied political figures, a consummate backroom operator with the power to decide the fate of legislation single-handedly.
And here is the other problem we face each year from more restrictions, these same people that vote and pass laws for our failure do whatever they want and is repeated in all states.
This is terrible.
A truly just system would sue the politicians who have created mass incarceration and and have failed to tax the public to fund the scheme.
If the state would wake up and admit that mass incarceration doesn’t work and stop locking up everyone they can, then maybe they wouldn’t be hurting for $$$$. What a screwed up thing to do to people.
I’ll bet the state believes they played no part in this, when paradoxically it’s their methods of doing things that caused his death.
Entrapment. Double jeopardy. Violation of equal protection – et al.
I swear there has to be a way that we cam sue the state for coercing us into a contractual agreement and making us sign that agreement under duress which is in turn used to cause us severe detriment and monetary loss. Under the civil codes this can’t be legal and the constitutional issues aside in a civil court of law I believe the state can be sued because it doesn’t matter that are criminal record is the cause for us being on the registry it is their publicly acessable website that is causing this harm and therefore the state is liable for damages in a civil court of law and under the civil codes and contract laws.someone needs to look into this its another out of the box idea that might actually have merit.