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Judge Carl Gerds III
The Michigan American Civil Liberties Union called it nothing more than debtors prison.
Apparently, Macomb County Circuit Court agreed.
The court on Tuesday ordered Eastpointe’s only judge to stop jailing poor defendants simply for failing to pay court fines and fees. Daniel Bethencourt of the Detroit Free Press writes that the ACLU called it a good first step toward ending a practice common across the state.
The Freep reports:
In an order issued Tuesday, the Macomb County Circuit Court said Judge Carl Gerds III of 38th District Court would have to halt “pay or stay” sentencing. The ACLU sued Gerds last year, arguing he routinely jailed people for failing to pay minor tickets and court fees.
“We are relieved to know that defendants in Eastpointe no longer have to worry about landing in what amounts to illegal debtors’ prisons,” Michael J. Steinberg, the ACLU Michigan legal director, said in a statement. Steinberg also said the court order “upholds a basic principle of fairness in our nation — that nobody should be jailed just because he or she is too poor to pay fines, fees and costs.”
