The Return of Debtors' Prisons?

Its been a while since these were around and its actually quiet shocking, though predictable, that they've began to return.The last known debtors' prison to close was in 1833, the United States abolished federal imprisonment for unpaid debts, and most states outlawed the practice around the same time. Before then, the use of debtors' prisons was widespread; signatories to the Declaration of Independence, James Wilson and Robert Morris were both later incarcerated, as were 2,000 New Yorkers annually by 1816.

Six states (Arkansas, Arizona, Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, and Washington) still allow debt collectors to seek arrest warrants for debtors in default if all other collection methods have failed. Whether a debtor will actually be prosecuted or not varies from state to state, county to county, and town to town.Other states like Tennessee and Oklahoma have ruled it unconstitutional and done away with it unless the court finds that the debtor actually possesses the means to pay—except in the case of child support obligations.

Most state constitutions, including Minnesota's, have clauses dating to the 1850s that expressly prohibit the jailing of people for their debts. Some people make the claim that it is unconstitutional in the United States to incarcerate someone solely for failing to pay a debt. However, there is little settled law on this matter and plenty of precedent for de facto debtors' prisons.

More than a third of U.S. states allow borrowers to be jailed for non payment of debts. Judges have signed off on more than 5,000 such warrants since the start of 2010 in nine counties.Because of sloppy, incomplete or even false documentation, many borrowers facing jail time don’t even know they’re being sued by creditors.

So what brings this topic back to light? Breast cancer survivor Lisa Lindsay was recently sent to jail after she received a $280 medical bill in error after calling in regards to the billing she was told she didn't have to pay it however the bill was turned over to a collection agency, and state troopers showed up at her home and took her to jail in handcuffs. Although the U.S. abolished debtors' prisons in the 1830s, more than a third of U.S. states allow the police to haul people in who don't pay all manner of debts, from bills for health care services to credit card and auto loans. In parts of Illinois, debt collectors commonly use publicly funded courts, sheriff's deputies, and country jails to pressure people who owe even small amounts to pay up