No more suing prisoners for room and board?

A bill that would prohibit Illinois from suing prison inmates to recover the cost of their incarceration passed the Senate last month. SB 2465 is sponsored by Senator Daniel Biss of Evanston. In October 2015, the Illinois Bar Journal reported on the practice of funding the government with fees and fines collected from criminals. Suing prisoners for their costs is even more unfair, according to some observers.

Unlike fines, which are tied to the crime itself, fees for things like inmate room and board are designed to raise revenue. According to an article from the Brennan Center for Justice, the mean annual state corrections expenditure in 2010 was $28,323 per inmate. Find out more about the problem and the proposed legislation in the May IBJ.

Posted on May 12, 2016 by Mark S. Mathewson

Member Comments (2)

The prisoners are not there voluntarily. Suing to recover an expense the prisoner tried to avoid must be unfair. Also, post prison adjustment is hard enough; let's not make life even more difficult.

Phil Glick

Is this a sick joke? This state is in the financial toilet and Senator Biss is worried criminals have to pay for their room and board? There's a simple solution to the prisoners' problems - DON'T BREAK THE LAW! Have we all gone insane? Is common sense forbidden? This bill is horse manure and should be opposed and defeated.

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