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by davengh
2721 days ago
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I worked at the state courts in California for a while. The "Penalty Assessment" fee amused/enraged me; at the time IIRC it was $17.50 per $10 of statutory fine. So the effective cost of a $100 statutory fine was $100 + $175 PA + court costs ($40 or more) + special fees ($1 if the charge could be adjudicated in night court, for example). So a $100 offense started at an actual out-the-door cost of about $315. Being a fee, "Penalty Assessment" could be changed administratively as opposed to changing the actual fine which needed legislation. |
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