We effectively still have debtor’s prisons in our country. Many think of debtor’

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We effectively still have debtor’s prisons in our country.Many think of debtor’s prisons as concepts of the past, but in Not a Crime to Be Poor, Edelman shows us that they are a present-day reality. Essentially, individuals can be charged a number of fines and fees for their court dates regardless of whether or not they are ultimately convicted of the crime with which they are charged.Important checks on injustice are often very limited in these cases.Though individuals are eligible for court appointed attorneys in cases concerning criminal guilt, attorneys are not appointed in hearings on ability to pay. Even though these individuals face potential deprivation of their liberty (imprisonment), there is often not a third-party present to make sure that ability to pay is correctly taken into account. Even when public defenders are appointed in criminal cases, they are not always free of charge despite the existence of the public defender system stemming from the need to protect individuals who cannot afford to pay for their own defense.The criminalization of public benefits appears to be a scare tactic to keep individuals who need welfare from accessing them.How does this affect the vicious cycle of poverty and incarceration? How does fear of poverty present a problem in itself?