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...

[Moonman62]

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.

...

That’s true, but the Dems and the GOPe like to cultivate and encourage such bad behavior, because the same people will vote for Big and Corrupt government.

[rfreedom4u]

First of all she should stop speeding and should wear a seatbelt. Budgeting her money would solve the expired license and insurance issue. If you are given a court date you show up! If you don’t have the money to pay fines the court usually will make payment arrangements with you.

This woman is a victim of her own choices. No sympathy from me except for the kids because they have such an irresponsible mother.

[Doctor 2Brains]

Yep, the writer starts talking about Ferguson deeper in the article. This is ALL ABOUT Ferguson.

[fungoking]

poor people have poor ways

[Dixie Yooper]

So where did she get the 400 for the bonds?

Probably from the same people who don't want to get stuck with her kids until she gets out.

[Carl Vehse]

Alberta's Child @4: I stopped reading right there. These fines were for something that I would call "irresponsibility violations."

What? You didn't stop when you read "Washington Post"? That's probably eight seconds of wasted time you'll never get back.

[Carl Vehse]

So where did she get the 400 for the bonds?

"Probably from the same people who don't want to get stuck with her kids until she gets out."

Notice that the Compost doesn't even bother to ask where the father(s) of her children is... or even if she (ever) had a husband(s). "Father" and "husband" are no longer components of the black subculture.

[smalltownslick]

I have a friend who always says - you wanna know how not to be poor? Go to where the poor people are, watch what they do, and don’t do it.

[wbarmy]

My first thought was in agreement with most of the posts here, bad judgements led to this.

But as I read more, I thought about growing up in East Texas, the Sheriffs in different small towns made money from ticketing the people from other areas because they would probably not show up to the courthouse on their court date.

I am not as big a supporter of police as I used to be, and most of this seems to be collusion between the police, the lawyers and the judges.

In addition, all these extra laws were made by lawyers, voted on by representatives (other lawyers), and forced on the populace, usually without their knowledge. I blame the current state of laws in our country, too many laws, all designed to make people into criminals so that they can be controlled. The people who live in these areas need to band together and get most of these laws off the books.

Just like the Tea Party wants to do.

[xrmusn]

Sympathy not found
= = = = = = = = = = = =

You can find it in the dickshunairy(sic) between

SHIITE and SYPHILIS

[FamiliarFace]

Article said that she had 4 tattoos. I wonder how she had money for those.

[roofgoat]

Remember when the racist phrase “Social Justice” started and all of the media and academic circles embraced and ran with it?

Remember when the racist phrase “White Privilege” started and all of the media and academic circles embraced and ran with it?

Wait for this beauty to sprout and grow into a redwood. “Poverty Violations”. I wonder if someone from old ACORN has trademarked this gem?

[Shery]

Not just St. Louis. It’s everywhere. Last Christmas we were taking boxes of food and loads of toys to the poor. The house was a squalid mess, everybody lying around in dirty PJs, etc. Open food bags and stuff everywhere. But there was the mammoth flat-screen TV, and everybody was positioned around it. I’d never seen anything so huge, and it nearly took up half the room. You can see where priorities are these days. It is not in working and providing for a family, cleaning house, laundry, making sensible meals, etc. Judging from the prices of such at SAM’s and Walmart, it must’ve cost over $2K. I still have a hard time with that!

[alexander_busek]

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.

First: This whole article is a real gem. Seldom have I seen such a good example of fallacious Liberal thinking. It boggles the mind that some people actually attempt to defend their position using such defective logic!

Practically every sentence provoked my gag reflect. I therefore feel smarter now just for having read it!

Second: She was fined for driving with a suspended license - I wonder why her license was suspended. Also, she had failed to wear a safety belt - I wonder if she was equally negligent when it came to buckling up her children.

I find the expression "poverty violations" especially delicious. No doubt, it will soon come to be applied also to shoplifting and looting.

Regards,

[stranger and pilgrim]

“So where did she get the 400 for the bonds? “

If I had to guess, I’d say she took her 55” television and her PS4 gaming console down to the pawnshop and got a loan. Of course, she won’t have the money to pay back the loan so she’ll come in every month for the next four or five months and pay $60 each time to keep from losing her stuff. Eventually, though, she’ll let the stuff go and replace it next spring when her income tax “refund” comes in.

[Alberta's Child]

LOL. I never learn.

[Eric Blair 2084]

This piece by Radley Balko was one of the best investigative articles I have read in a long time. You don’t have to agree with it but you should definitely read it. It is long but it’s worth it.

[workerbee]

What’s your point? Rich guy in a poor place, what?

[Eric Blair 2084]

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.

________________________________

It’s funny that you mention New Jersey state troopers. Where there is smoke there is fire sometimes. There were issues. Which is why they were put under federal control for a while.

When I was a teenager I was naïve and I didn’t even see Or think about what was going on.

Back in the mid-80s as a high school student with a new license I was driving down the New Jersey Turnpike with my best friend who was Hispanic in my fathers $25,000 European luxury sedan. Got pulled over for something. Probably speeding I was pretty good at that back then. :-)

Two Brown teenagers in an expensive European sedan. Obviously they must be drug dealers. The state trooper before even asking for my license and registration saw a brown paper bag in the backseat. He didn’t ask if he can search he just reached behind me and grabbed the bag out of the backseat. Probably thought he was going to find a big drug bust that he can brag to his buddies back at the station house about.

He found my Burger King dirty work uniform covered in mustard and ketchup and grease.

He was disappointed. It was only then that he asked me for my license and registration which I gave him. He gave me a speeding ticket and I went home to my bedroom in outer white Landia. :-). Dad yelled at me when I told him I got a ticket and the fine was five days of work at Burger King.

I never really gave it a second thought until 20 years later.

[WVKayaker]

What’s your point? Rich guy in a poor place, what?

What point do you wish to make? You make a statement and leave it with no explanation.

i don't know who is the rich man to which you refer. I am not wealthy, but I do know many wealthy Filipinos. Most of them are employers and contribute to the society by providing jobs. Many of them are also philanthropists wiling to give of their fortunes to benefit others.

Your point seems to be to cast aspersions by "drive-by" assertions, but miss the mark by a couple of miles! I am indeed "rich" in that I have loads of friends on both sides of the world.

My point is simple. Poor people exist everywhere, but some people take it in stride and live a good life without having aplenty! Many of those are also my friends!