NACBATheLand

This presentation will discuss the disturbing trend of how the collection of private debt has resulted in incarceration of debtors. It will cover the main findings from ACLU Principal Human Rights Researcher Jennifer Turner's report A Pound of Flesh: The Criminalization of Private Debt, which investigates debt collection in 26 states. We describe the public policies and court practices that allow the arrest and jailing of debtors and the consequences of these legal interactions on debtors. We conclude with policy recommendations that protect debtors' due process, equal protection, and human rights.