WHEN THE STATE SEES CITIZENS AS PREY: Why I refuse to send people to jail for failure to pay fines. Most of these fines — as well as the “penalties” for late payments, bogus “court costs,” etc. — are just a way to milk people, mostly poor, for revenue. Fine amounts should be limited, and revenues from municipal fines should go to a state fund, to remove the incentive to use them as a randomly-imposed tax.
Related: Beth A. Colgan: Reviving the Excessive Fines Clause.