Paid Your Debt to Society? Court-related Financial Obligations and Community Supervision during the First Year after Release from Prison.

Academics, policymakers, and practitioners alike are increasingly interested in criminal legal debt stemming from financial sanctions and its consequences on individuals and families. Most prior work has focused on justice system exposure and the accumulation of fines, fees, and costs. This study assesses whether owing criminal court debt is a factor in keeping people tied to the justice system in the short-term yet critical window after release from prison. In addition, I examine whether being under supervision (i.e., probation or parole) increases the chance of owing court-related debt. Relying on longitudinal survey data from the Returning Home Study, results suggest the existence of a feedback loop whereby one's status as being under correctional supervision at release from prison leads to increased debt, which in turn increases the chance of remaining under supervision during the first year out. The findings have implications for law and policy and raise important questions about the role of revenue generation in criminal justice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]