I'm thrilled to see my old pal Vanita Gupta at the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department targeting excessive fines and fees and debtors' prison policies. See New York Times
coverage, a
letter sent by DOJto chief justices and court administrators chastising them for using arrest warrants for collections, and here's
more background from the DOJ. Noted the Times, "The issue has helped forge alliances between liberal civil rights groups and conservative organizations. Grover Norquist, the conservative activist, spoke last year at a White House summit meeting on poverty and incarceration. The Ins ute for Justice, a libertarian organization,
has brought lawsuits accusing cities of using court fines to raise revenue."