It Is No Longer Illegal To Break The Law In Ferguson
Brian Anderson
August 25, 2015
Ferguson was already a pretty lawless place, but now it’s official. Following former AG Eric Holder’s scathing Justice Department report that slammed the Missouri town for the racist practice of giving traffic tickets to black people and expecting them to pay the fines, a judge has rendered all warrants null and void. As you will soon see, this pretty much means the law is no longer a thing in Ferguson.
This nonsense is from The AP:
A new municipal judge in Ferguson, Missouri, on Monday ordered sweeping changes to court practices…Municipal Court Judge Donald McCullin, appointed in June, ordered that all arrest warrants issued in the city before Dec. 31, 2014 be withdrawn.
This story is about traffic tickets, but notice how it doesn’t say traffic violation warrants, but rather all warrants? Does this mean that assault, theft, and even murder warrants are withdrawn? Sure, why not. If it’s racist to give black people tickets, it must also be racist to arrest them for robbing, beating, and killing.
Defendants will receive new court dates along with options for disposing of their cases, such as payment plans or community service. Fines may be commuted for indigent people.
If they didn’t pay their fines or show up to court before, when arrest warrants were being issued, what makes this judge think they will take of it now?
Here’s the part that means the law no longer applies in Ferguson:
McCullin, who is black, ordered instead that if an arrest warrant is issued for a minor traffic violation, the defendant will not be incarcerated, but will be released on their own recognizance and given another court date, the city said.
Let’s see if I understand how this works: A black person gets a traffic ticket, doesn’t pay it, and skips the court date. If that person gets pulled over again and the police officer notices her or she has an outstanding ticket, that person will not be arrested and given a new court date. Why in the hell would anyone ever pay a traffic ticket again in Ferguson? There is literally no consequence for blowing off a traffic violation any more.
But wait, it gets better for Ferguson’s lawless residents:
[The Judge] added that many people who have had drivers licenses suspended will be able to obtain them and start driving again. In the past, the city’s director of revenue would suspend a defendant’s driver’s license solely for failing to appear in court or failing to pay a fine.
No arrest, no jail time, and no suspension of driving privileges. I’ll ask again: why would someone pay a traffic fine or even show up to court in Ferguson?
“These changes should continue the process of restoring confidence in the Court… and giving many residents a fresh start,” said McCullin in a statement.
Or, the total loss of traffic fine revenue will bankrupt the city. They will find it impossible to find and retain police officers because no one will want to work in a place where they can’t enforce the law and run the risk of being accused of racism if they do. Lastly, residents who already didn’t give a shit about the law will give even less of a shit now.
Give this new judge some credit. He found a way to make a terrible place even worse
