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| Court hears testimony in prisoners' fee case |
| By heraldnews.com |
| Published: 11/03/2009 |
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Dartmouth — The issue of whether county sheriffs can reinstate charging inmates fees was heard in Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Monday morning. The High Court heard testimony from lawyers for the Bristol County House of Correction and Sheriff Thomas Hodgson. A decision on the case is expected within the next few months. Four years after a Superior Court judge ruled the $5-a-day fee rule was unlawful, the SJC plucked the case out of Appellate Court in September in order to rule on its legality. Under the rule implemented from 2002 to 2004, inmates who didn’t pay their bills were not allowed to buy candy and other treats at the prison canteen. Inmates began asking their families to pay the fees in order for them to continue to purchase sweets. Hodgson said that was always discouraged. Hodgson said the yearly cost for taxpayers is about $35,000 per prisoner. He said $750,000 was raised during the years fees were charged. He said if the fee rule was still in effect, the funds collected would have totaled $3 million. Read More. |
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