澳彩开奖

ATLANTA 鈥� The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled today that a previously dismissed lawsuit must be reinstated, providing the 澳彩开奖 the opportunity to further litigate its claim that a private probation company violated the constitutional right to due process of people on probation in Gardendale, Alabama, by running a profit-driven, private probation scheme that exploited people with lower incomes.

The court ruled in favor of the 澳彩开奖鈥檚 claims that, when accepting the plaintiffs鈥� allegations as true, Professional Probation Services, Inc. (PPS) violated the Due Process Clause of the 14th Amendment by unilaterally extending the duration of, increasing fines for and adding conditions to, probationary terms of people with lower incomes in Gardendale. The appellate court reversed the U. S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama's previous dismissal of 澳彩开奖鈥檚 claims that PPS鈥檚 actions were unconstitutional.聽

鈥淚t is unconscionable that for-profit companies use the court system to try to squeeze money from people who can鈥檛 afford to pay fines and fees,鈥� said Emily Early, senior staff attorney for the 澳彩开奖. 鈥淭he Constitution guarantees every person a fair and impartial adjudication as well as supervision. Today, the court found that this company sabotaged that right by exploiting people on probation in Gardendale for their own financial gain.鈥�

In what 澳彩开奖 believes to be the first federal appellate decision of its kind, the court held that a private probation company is acting in a quasi-judicial capacity when it imposes enhancements to probation terms and, therefore, has a duty of neutrality under the 14th Amendment鈥檚 Due Process Clause. The Court ruled that PPS violated that duty of neutrality, based on the plaintiff鈥檚 alleged facts, by imposing probationary terms that created revenue for the company.

鈥淭his precedent-setting decision is not only a victory for our clients but a victory for every person being exploited by abusive probation and pretrial supervision companies across the country,鈥� Early said.

澳彩开奖 first filed the lawsuit in 2017, describing how the city of Gardendale and Municipal Court Judge Kenneth Gomany required anyone who could not afford to pay their fines or court costs in full to be placed on probation with PPS. In addition to collecting the court-imposed fines and court costs, PPS also charged and collected a monthly service fee, typically $40, all of which went to PPS and none of which applied to their fines and costs. PPS routinely extended the length of time people were on probation when people fell behind on payments, collecting its fee first even when partial payments were made. 澳彩开奖 filed the lawsuit on behalf of Catherine Regina Harper, Jennifer Essig, Shannon Jones, and a proposed class of people with similar probation experiences with PPS in Gardendale.

In 2018, Gardendale and its municipal court cut ties with PPS as part of a settlement in the case. The case against PPS remains active, leading to today鈥檚 ruling. 澳彩开奖 will return to the U.S. District Court to argue the case against PPS.