MikeK
Gold Member
Resumption in the U.S. of criminal prosecution and imprisonment for debt is both a portent of a prolonged and significant economic downturn (depression) and a component of the changing nature of American society. The redistribution of wealth during the past three decades has created what is in fact a neo-aristocracy and this debtors' prison development is unmistakable evidence that the middle class will soon be replaced by a de-facto peasant class.
(Excerpt)
More than a third of all U.S. states allow borrowers who can't or won't pay to be jailed. Judges have signed off on more than 5,000 such warrants since the start of 2010 in nine counties with a total population of 13.6 million people, according to a tally by The Wall Street Journal of filings in those counties. Nationwide figures aren't known because many courts don't keep track of warrants by alleged offense. In interviews, 20 judges across the nation said the number of borrowers threatened with arrest in their courtrooms has surged since the financial crisis began.
Debtors' Prison Gets a 2011 Update - WSJ.com
(Excerpt)
More than a third of all U.S. states allow borrowers who can't or won't pay to be jailed. Judges have signed off on more than 5,000 such warrants since the start of 2010 in nine counties with a total population of 13.6 million people, according to a tally by The Wall Street Journal of filings in those counties. Nationwide figures aren't known because many courts don't keep track of warrants by alleged offense. In interviews, 20 judges across the nation said the number of borrowers threatened with arrest in their courtrooms has surged since the financial crisis began.
Debtors' Prison Gets a 2011 Update - WSJ.com
