Individuals forced to pay hundreds of dollars more to pretrial services firm after bail: lawsuit
Shutterstock.com
People who paid bail before trial in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, weren’t released from jail until they paid hundreds of dollars more for pretrial supervision, according to a would-be class action filed Monday.
A $525 up-front fee is charged by Rehabilitation Home Incarceration with the knowledge of Judge Trudy White of the Nineteenth Judicial District Court of Louisiana, who sets bond and “indiscriminately orders” supervision by RHI, the suit alleges. After paying the initial fee, those released are required to pay a monthly fee of $225, along with additional fees for services such as classes and electronic monitoring, according to the suit.
The suit was filed by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), and the ACLU of Louisiana, according to press releases here and here. The Advocate also has a story.
The complaint alleges RHI owner Cleve Dunn Sr. is operating an illegal racketeering enterprise and acting with government officials to violate detainees’ Fourth and 14th Amendment rights. The suit also alleges violation of state unfair trade practices law and unjust enrichment.
Dunn’s son served as chair of White’s re-election committee, the suit says. She was re-elected in 2014, and over the next two years White assigned more than 300 people to RHI for pretrial supervision, the suit says.
White did not comment when reached by the Advocate. The newspaper was unable to reach Dunn for comment.
