[disgruntledphd2]

It looks like the fine was much more than she got paid.

[kennend3]

I still find the whole idea of "settling" for money instead of going to court and getting a guilty/innocent ruling troubling.

This is not offered to "poor" people, so we have a clear two-tier justice system.

Wealthy and get in trouble - "fines"

Poor and get in trouble - court, potential jail time.

[ensignavenger]

> This is not offered to "poor" people, so we have a clear two-tier justice system.

This is absolutely not true in the US. Poor people are very much encouraged to settle without going to trial. In fact, the vast majority of all cases are resolved that way. Poor people relying on public defenders tend to get pushed into settling more easily than wealthy folks, even.

Indeed, it is the lack of public defenders that create a two-tier justice system more than anything in the US.

[disgruntledphd2]

Totally fair, I was just replying to the notion that she'd made more from the scam then she paid in fines.