How municipalities in St. Louis County, Missouri profit from poverty

Washington Post ^ | 9/3/2014 | Rodney Balko

[iowamark]

On March 20th in the St. Louis County town of Florissant, someone made an illegal U-turn in front of Nicole Bolden. The 32-year-old black single mother hit her brakes, but couldn’t avoid a collision...

“He was really nice and polite at first,” Bolden says. “But once he ran my name, he got real mean with me. He told me I was going to jail. I had my 3-year-old and my one-and-a-half year old with me. I asked him about my kids. He said I had better find someone to come and get them, because he was taking me in.” The Florissant officer arrested and cuffed Bolden in front of her children. Her kids remained with another officer until Bolden’s mother and sister could come pick them up.

The officer found that Bolden had four arrest warrants in three separate jurisdictions: the towns of Florissant and Hazelwood in St. Louis County, and the town of Foristell in St. Charles County. All of the warrants were for failure to appear in court for traffic violations. Bolden hadn’t appeared in court because she didn’t have the money. A couple of those fines were for speeding, one was for failure to wear her seatbelt, and most of the rest were for what defense attorneys in the St. Louis area have come to call “poverty violations” — driving with a suspended license, expired plates, expired registration, and a failure to provide proof of insurance.

The Florissant officer first took Bolden to the jail in that town, where Bolden posted a couple hundred dollars bond and was released at around midnight. She was next taken to Hazelwood and held at the jail there until she could post a second bond. That was another couple hundred dollars...

[iowamark]

Interesting essay.

[Doctor 2Brains]

Got money for a weave, cell phone, big ass tv, and x boxes for each of her 15 kids I’ll wager.

[yldstrk]

St. Louis sounds like a mess.

[Alberta's Child]

A couple of those fines were for speeding, one was for failure to wear her seatbelt and most of the rest were for what defense attorneys in the St. Louis area have come to call "poverty violations" — driving with a suspended license, expired plates, expired registration and a failure to provide proof of insurance.

I stopped reading right there. These fines were for something that I would call "irresponsibility violations." This creature has no business ever getting behind the wheel of a car again.

[ltc8k6]

404 error

Sympathy not found

[PeteB570]

I told my daughter’s ex-boyfriend one time “Poor people can’t do stupid shit.”

He let his car insurance lapse, so the state pulled his tag and the fees and penalties started adding up.

One of the reasons he’s an ex.

[Gen.Blather]

Poor people tend to make bad decisions. That, in large part, is why they’re poor. An earlier posting today was to an article by Ann Coulter. She wrote on racism. A study attempting to prove New Jersey Highway Patrol was targeting black speeders over white speeders instead proved that blacks sped faster and more frequently than whites. Doing things that are against the law can incur great costs and penalties. I can understand a millionaire speeding on a road he deems safe for the speed because the ticket cost is irrelevant. (A doctor I know told me, “I could pay three of these tickets a day and wouldn’t notice the money.) But, the point is, according to the study, the rich guy isn’t as likely to speed as the poor person. He’s probably less likely to smoke or be obese as well. Walk through a Wal-Mart (average income of a Wal-Mart shopper is only $25k.) You can see poor decisions on every isle ranging from facial tattoos to obesity to an ankle monitor.

My mother used to say, “Poverty is an attitude problem.”

[stranger and pilgrim]

“A couple of those fines were for speeding, one was for failure to wear her seatbelt and most of the rest were for what defense attorneys in the St. Louis area have come to call “poverty violations” — driving with a suspended license, expired plates, expired registration and a failure to provide proof of insurance.”

So, society is supposed to look the other way while people drive unlicensed, unregistered, uninsured vehicles? Why should members of certain communities be exempt from being responsible members of society?

Oh, right . . . poverty, race . . . I get it. Well, clearly Obama phones are not enough. We must have Obama cars and Obama insurance.

[CitizenUSA]

She knows she has a “heavy foot,” but she just can’t help herself! One can’t keep getting speeding tickets, ignore paying them or appearing in court to plead for leniency, and expect to go on doing the same without a confrontation with police at some point.

She’s worried about her children? Her own choices set up the chain of events that resulted in her being unexpectedly separated from those children. The article is written to show how cruel and uncaring the police were, but she brought it on herself.

[The_Republic_Of_Maine]

The officer found that Bolden had four arrest warrants in three separate jurisdictions: the towns of Florissant and Hazelwood in St. Louis County, and the town of Foristell in St. Charles County. All of the warrants were for failure to appear in court for traffic violations. Bolden hadn’t appeared in court because she didn’t have the money. A couple of those fines were for speeding, one was for failure to wear her seatbelt, and most of the rest were for what defense attorneys in the St. Louis area have come to call “poverty violations” — driving with a suspended license, expired plates, expired registration, and a failure to provide proof of insurance.

The Florissant officer first took Bolden to the jail in that town, where Bolden posted a couple hundred dollars bond and was released at around midnight. She was next taken to Hazelwood and held at the jail there until she could post a second bond. That was another couple hundred dollars...

---

So where did she get the 400 for the bonds?

[rbg81]

So we should have two sets of laws right? One set for middle or upper class people, another set for poor whites and minorities. The latter should get winked at if they drive without insurance or valid licenses/registrations, eh?

I am really sick of this mind set. I bet if someone did a budget analysis on this woman, they would find she is spending lots of $$ on stupid stuff. If you can afford a car, you can almost always find a way to afford the stuff to keep it legal.

It should be one set of laws for everyone.

[wrench]

She wasn’t arrested for her traffic tickets, she was arrested on multiple bench warrants for failure to appear in court, just like anyone in the US would be.

We hear this same BS from illegal aliens who refuse to follow the laws in this country.

Without respect for law, there is nothing but chaos.

[rbg81]

Walk through a Wal-Mart (average income of a Wal-Mart shopper is only $25k.) You can see poor decisions on every isle ranging from facial tattoos to obesity to an ankle monitor.

---

Well said. I occasionally frequent Walmart and always feel like I need a shower afterwards. Too many dysfunctional types. Some of these people also seem to delight in giving the poor cashiers (who actually work for a living) a hard time—typically when their credit or EBT card is refused.

[CitizenUSA]

I like to explain that our culture was working fine until sin went mainstream. A wealthy man can afford adultery and a bastard or two. I’m not saying it’s right. It’s not and it can cost the man’s soul. However, the rich could use money to mitigate bad results.

The problem is, we now have millions of poor people who want to make all the same bad choices, but they don’t have the $ to pay for it. Instead, they want you or I to pay for their mistakes. That way leads to economic collapse.

[Alberta's Child]

It’s worth noting that the “poverty violations” description was originally coined by defense attorneys, so it’s not like anyone would take it seriously anyway. LOL.

[WVKayaker]

This creature has no business ever getting behind the wheel of a car again.

I live in the Philippines now, and poverty is rite in the population. Most cannot afford a car, or even a 2-wheeler. Gas and diesel are more expensive than in the States, and

Jeepneys are the way to get around for most folk, and buses go everywhere city to city. There are 3 wheeled tricycles and pedicabs all around the city and in the Provinces (what they call the "boonies" back home).

Even though it is an Island nation (7107 islands at high tide), I can take a bus from Davao City to Manila. There are ferries to cross from island to island and some bridges to link the rest. Of course, I can fly, as well, with a choice of modern air carriers.

I can travel from my home to the Mall downtown (any of the 11 big malls here) for around 12-15 Ph Pesos (43.5 to the dollar). I cannot drive that cheaply.

They are crowded, and I even had my pockets picked one time, losing around 3000 PhP (from a zipped wallet in my front hip pocket, and the money was removed and credit cards remained!). I rarely drive, since the traffic is maddening, and the trip is easier when I ride.

[Alberta's Child]

That's an excellent observation, but it will fall on deaf ears among people who have no place in their lives for a Divine influence.

In a worldly -- but still practical and applicable -- sense, a better description might be: "Our culture was working fine until vice went mainstream."

[sr4402]

The Washington Pest strikes out again. Just reading the article destroys it's premise. So typical of shoddy reporting these days.

The article promotes lawlessness for the poor - definitely not a good idea.

She failed to appear in Court citing lack of money. Is that supposed to be an excuse?

If she had appeared the judge would have probably reduced the fines or dismissed some of them. She would have learned to be more careful when she drives from the judges admonishment. She definitely would have been better off than where she is today.

I feel for her position in life - a series of bad decisions compounded probably by circumstances. But fooling with the courts is a very bad decision.

[CitizenUSA]

“Our culture was working fine until vice went mainstream.”

I think that expresses it even better. Vice is like poison. It’s all about the dose, and nowadays were drinking buckets of the stuff (culturally speaking). It can’t last, and it won’t. Imagine what would happen if we all behaved like the woman in this article—chaos!

Fortunately, it all works out splendidly for those of us who trust in the Lord, but there’s no guarantee it won’t be a bumpy ride en route.

[Moonman62]

These are all one sided sob stories designed to justify all the rioting, looting, and race pimping in Ferguson. These stories could be told in any major urban area. The Washington Post has received its marching orders from Obama to start slamming the area, and Holder is going to investigate the entire area. I can assume that they are learning they have no case against officer Wilson and that the Gentle Giant was a violent thug.