Ability to Pay

Every day in every part of NC, judges impose fines, fees, and other financial obligations on people for criminal and traffic offenses without any inquiry into the person’s ability to pay. Since the people entangled in our criminal justice system, at every level, are overwhelmingly poor and disproportionately people of color, this places an unbearable burden on those least able to afford it, and the disastrous consequences for these communities have now been well documented.

This is why we support courts adopting policies, practices, and procedures to determine a person's ability to pay before imposing court costs, fees, and other financial obligations. 

What have we done so far?

AOC-415
Our coalition assisted in the development of AOC form 415, a motion that individuals can use to ask the court to consider their financial situation before imposing fines and fees or after imposing fines and fees if their financial circumstances have changed and they find themselves unable to pay court debt.

Rule 28
Our coalition researched, wrote a proposal, and successfully advocated for the adoption of Rule 28 of the General Rules of Practice for Superior and District Courts in North Carolina, which makes it mandatory for courts to consider the financial status of an individual who has been convicted in a criminal case or found responsible for an infraction, once they file form AOC-CR-415 requesting relief from fines, fees, and other monetary obligations.

Public Defender Commitments
Our coalition has secured commitments from public defenders in two counties (Durham and Mecklenburg) stating that they will file AOC-CR-415 requesting that the court consider their client’s financial status in every case their client is convicted of a crime. Four district attorneys in four counties (Durham, Mecklenburg, New Hanover, and Pitt) also stated that they will consent to each AOC-CR-415 motion filed by a person that is deemed indigent by the court. 

Court watching
We are seeking volunteers for court watching to see that these motions are being filed so that we see a shift in the way courts are imposing fines and fees on our neighbors. If you are interested in court watching, please let us know here.

We will continue to advocate for more uniform ability-to-pay assessments to be made across the state in all of our North Carolina courtrooms.