The town of Valley was dragged into the spotlight for its practice of
arresting people who could not pay their bills.
Trashing Their Rights: Alabama town uses 'debtors'
prison' for people who fall behind on garbage bills
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Dwayne Fatheree Read the full piece here
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Friend,
The stately Victorian cupola of the original Chambers County
Courthouse casts a cold morning shadow over the statue of favorite son
Joe Louis, the famed "Brown Bomber" boxer who hailed from
rural LaFayette, Alabama. A few feet away, lumber trucks rumble
through the town's main drag, leaving the scent of pine and
diesel drifting in their wake.
Nortasha Jackson, 49, who lives in the nearby town of Valley, is
inside the modern courthouse addition, waiting patiently for her name
to be called. Her attorney told her that the charges against her were
going to be dropped
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, ending a months-long ordeal that started when she fell behind on her
trash bill.
Even though the concept of "debtors' prison"
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has been declared unconstitutional, the town of Valley was dragged
into the spotlight for its practice of arresting people who could not
pay their bills. In November, 82-year-old Martha Menefield was
arrested for owing $77 for trash pickup. Her story went viral online,
and national media outlets carried it through several news cycles
because of how preposterous the situation sounded.
But Menefield's case was not unusual. The city of Valley has
been arresting its citizens for years over past-due trash bills,
adding hundreds if not thousands of dollars to the owed amount in
fines and court costs by the poorest of its residents.
Southern Poverty Law Center attorney Micah West, who represented
Jackson in her fight against City Hall, said the practice is at best
misguided, if not flatly illegal.
"The Alabama and federal constitutions prohibit prosecuting
people simply because they cannot pay a garbage bill," West
said. "Although we are pleased that Ms. Jackson's ordeal
is over, the city of Valley is currently prosecuting other people for
violating a statute that does not make nonpayment a crime. We ask
officials to dismiss those charges, too, and to take proactive steps
to ensure that people who fall behind on their trash bills are not
unfairly punished for their poverty."
Not surprisingly, those charged under the policy are predominantly
people of color.
'We got a warrant'
Jackson, who is on disability and holds a job as a cashier, was
arrested at her home over the Thanksgiving weekend. When police
arrived and told her she was going to be taken to jail, her first
reaction was to laugh.
"I was like, 'What you want?' and they said,
'We got a warrant,'" Jackson said. "I was
like, 'These people are actually going to arrest me for my
trash.'"
For the three months she was in arrears, Jackson owed $60. But after
the arrest, her costs skyrocketed.
"You're missing work, you're getting arrested,
you're having to find a bondsman, because you can't use
your property [for a bond]," Jackson said. "They said mine
[her bail] was going to be $2,500. Who's going to have $2,500
when you don't have $20 to pay your trash bill?"
Before taking on her cashier's position, Jackson was living
solely on her disability payment of about $930 a month.
"You have to pay mortgage or rent, even if you are staying in
public housing, you still have to pay from $300 to $500," she
said. "And then your light bill is $100, $150. Food -
we're not even going to talk about food. You got baloney
sandwiches and peanut butter sandwiches. Which one you want? In the
summertime, you might get a tomato sandwich. But that's about
it."
Aside from the economic challenges, Jackson said she wanted her story
told in hopes that the law could be changed so no one else has to go
through what she did. But many have already followed her path. The
city of Valley issued 21 arrest warrants in the last two years to
residents who failed to pay or participate in trash pickup. Thirteen
of those residents - 62% - were Black, even though Black
people comprise only 38% of Valley's population.
Read More
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Sincerely,
Your friends at the Southern Poverty Law Center
The SPLC is a catalyst for racial justice in the South and beyond,
working in partnership with communities to dismantle white supremacy,
strengthen intersectional movements, and advance the human rights of
all people.
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