Just sent a letter to the governor

[moondoggie1]

I thought I would sit down and try to be reasonable, but what I finally wound up sending was this:

Three years ago my 19 year old son was in his second year of college, and working at the same job he'd had since he was 16. He was sharing a house with several other guys, they had bought themselves a stash of marijuana, and he was the one who was caught. In an effort to salvage his future, I cashed in my retirement and at least momentarily bought his way to probation instead of prison. Had I understood the system, I would have known that the real thing to avoid was the felony--but I didn't know that then. Two months later, he was working a low level construction job (being unemployable due to the felony) and one of his newly met coworkers 'stored' some tools on our property. The tools were stolen, and the coworker told where the tools were to avoid his own prison sentence. At the time, they thought my son had been involved in the theft, and it cost him his probation. His ten year back-up sentence kicked in. I had no money left, so my family paid court fees, and put money on his prison books. A month ago he was released. He has applied everywhere, followed every lead, and family and friends made every contact we could make. He has one 'maybe'. A local restaurant agreed to hire him to be a dishwasher next time they have an opening. We are grateful for at least THAT opportunity. Friday, we were contacted and told that he has until June 30th to pay the state of Missouri $7,342.50 to cover the cost of his prison room and board. I have no money left, my family has no money left, and a dishwashing career is not going to raise that money by June 30th. So here's my question: I'm a council woman in *******. I don't fit the 'profile' so I would never be arrested. I imagine my son still has contacts. How bad do you need your money? I think I could pull it off if it's necessary to keep my son from being further destroyed by the state. Please let me know soon. The 30th is 13 days away, so I don't have much time.

***** *******

I'm anxiously waiting for his reply.

[1bird2]

You are the only one I know who could pull this off!! I am hoping that the governor has glaucoma, and that his medical marijuana source has dried up...and he will be your only customer...and call it a day!!!
UNBELIEVABLE....really. I have not called you yet to tell you what my son said for your son to do with that bill....

[laneyb]

This is absolutely asinine!! I applaud your letter to the Governor! I suggest you send it to the local and state papers. Tax dollars paid for the incarceration and I assure you the state taxpayers will not be refunded if your son happened to pay up. Your son can also file bankruptcy - what has he to lose??

So sorry this is happening to you!

[mrsrimoldi]

God Lord! Isn't making him pay for his incarceration punishing him again? So what if he isn't able to come up with the $$ are they going to put him back in jail and add more $$ for his room and board again?! Oh my~ good on you for writing that letter!

[thisfamily]

Oh gosh.. that's just ridiculous your son caught a couple of charges he wasn't even guilty for.. I am hoping your governor is reasonable and meets the deadline. That's just absolutely insane. Your son definitely got used by some self serving lowlifes. Is there no way to reverse the felony and the charges?

[Abeca]

Depressing. Ridiculous. Agonizing. Wrong. I've been thinking of writing a letter to my governor too. He actually has talked about increasing opportunities for folks coming out of prison with felonies. I'd like him to know I appreciate that effort. (Ohio)

[klw9653]

I'd like to know how the hell they even expect anyone coming out of prison to even be able to pay that! That's absurd! I'd send a copy to the local papers and tv stations, too!

[yourself]

just watch out - that last bit can come off as a threat of blackmail

[moondoggie1]

Originally Posted by yourself

just watch out - that last bit can come off as a threat of blackmail

I actually pondered that--and figured at this point I don't care. I know it's a gamble, but I figured if they pursued me for it--it might draw attention to the absurdity of the whole thing. Thanks for the warning though.

[moondoggie1]

Update--I didn't just write a letter to the governor. I also contacted everyone from city and county level-up through any legislator or organization I could think of (although I didn't send them all the same letter). I have not yet heard from the governors' office, but the ACLU and someone from the Attorney General have both called. The ACLU is sending further paperwork, and said this might be something they're interested in pursuing.

The call from the Attorney General was interesting. Based on the call, what 'appears' to be happening, is the DOC has an agency that works like the police--they contact people and tell them they have to pay this money or they'll face being violated, having a percent of their wages taken, and any assets seized. The attorney general plays the role of 'prosecutor' and determines which cases they'll pursue. At this point, the attorney general appears to have no intent to pursue my son, but that can change for up to 5 years past the the time that they are released from parole. They said they rarely go after wages, but technically, if he receives an inheritance or builds up assets of any value, they can decide to pursue. They weren't able (or wouldn't) tell me if he would be violated for failure to pay, even though they hadn't pursued the case.

In Missouri, if you remain violation free for 3 years, you are released from supervision, and three years later can apply for a waiver to apply for state licensing in professions despite the felony status that forbids being licensed. If he is violated, he has another 7 years of parole, plus the three years before he could apply...so it's still potentially problematic--and WRONG! If I hear from the governor, I'll let ya'all know (unless I 'hear' in a way that involves people in suits )

[fbopnomore]

The news from the AG is a good thing. Even though they can't tell you he will never be hounded for the money, it seems likely that he won't be unless he wins the lottery.

I don't know if the fees for incarceration are dischargable in bankruptcy, but a free consultation with a BR Lawyer would answer that question right away. I'm sure it would be less costly than paying MO $7,000.00.

[moondoggie1]

I think I've finally sorted through this mess--and it appears I owe an apology to the governor! After making and receiving more calls yesterday, the state told me that if they come after him, the amount they would be asking for would be 74,000.00--the 7,342.50 came just from the county court for the time he spent sitting in jail waiting to be sentenced! On the plus side, the county appears to be in violation of the statute. The statute says they must establish that the person has assets totaling at least ten percent of the money sought, and that they must notify the person 30 days prior to filing so that the person has 30 days to dispute whether they actually have that many assets. The county did none of that--they just routinely turned everyone over to the collection agency. I spoke with the presiding commissioner at length yesterday (who is a very good guy--I actually feel sorry for him, because he didn't start this mess, but once he realized what the statute actually said, I could tell he was distraught at the idea of having to untangle it). Since it's county acting outside the statute, I'm doubting the ACLU would still be interested, and since it is what it is, I doubt I would pursue it, BUT--it does infuriate me that even the local justice system can do this much harm in violation of the law, and will probably just shrug it off in some form.

[thisfamily]

So the commissioner is gonna help or not? Even though he may not have caused this mess, I think he shouldn't stand by idly and watch it happening. If someone is in violation of any statute, they need to be held accountable and be made an example of. That's how he can start to untangle all that mess. Others will thank you for setting this percendent!

[Sheryl P.]

Funny how the keepers of the law are never accountable for their "mistakes".smh

[thisfamily]

Originally Posted by Sheryl P.

Funny how the keepers of the law are never accountable for their "mistakes".smh

Haha yeah... I don't know why he acted as if it wasn't his problem and that he was 'doing her a favor' either. It is his problem and he's responsible for his part in getting this resolved.

[moondoggie1]

Originally Posted by ieatcupcakes

So the commissioner is gonna help or not? Even though he may not have caused this mess, I think he shouldn't stand by idly and watch it happening. If someone is in violation of any statute, they need to be held accountable and be made an example of. That's how he can start to untangle all that mess. Others will thank you for setting this percendent!

I'm not sure what is going to happen next. I know that many people in our area have received these phone calls, and they have caused a lot of stress. I'm not sure if anyone made any attempt to pay--or if anyone was violated for failure to pay. The commissioner had said that the agency was 'state approved' , so he had assumed that they would know the statutes, and act in accordance. I'm still just guessing, but I would think it would have been the responsibility of the county to verify that the people met the ten percent critera, and had been given the 30 day required notice.

My impression of the commissioner was that he really didn't know, and is the kind of person who will want to set this right--so I thought I'd give him a few days, and then find out what his version of 'setting it right' looks like. I will keep you posted.

[thatwiz]

It will probably be like the IRS-they will make an example out of someone at some point-to scare others to pay-and then do it again every so often.

[fbopnomore]

They call it fostering voluntary compliance too, lol.