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Effective coverage of restitution realities in Philadelphia courts

By Douglas A. Berman

Yesterday's Philadelphia Inquirer had this notable piece about the limited payment of restitution punishments in its local courts.  The piece was headlined "Victim restitution lags badly in Phila." and here is an excerpt: Convicted criminals in the city owe hundreds of millions of dollars in fines, fees, and restitution to their victims, but the courts have not found a way to get them to pay up.  Philadelphia defendants are supposed to be paying out $144 million a year, court officials say.  At last count, they were paying only $10 million yearly. That works out to 7 cents on the dollar. Of the 224,000 convicted defendants on payment plans, 206,000 are behind. Almost all are months in arrears.  And Philadelphia's court system trails far behind the rest of the state in getting defendants to pay up, comparative data show...continue to full post

Full post as published by Sentencing Law and Policy on November 22, 2010 (boomark / email).