# Do some jails in the US actually charge room and board? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 31, 2014, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-some-jails-in-the-us-actually-charge-room-and-board/708633 "2014-12-31T19:01:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2014, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-some-jails-in-the-us-actually-charge-room-and-board/708633/1 "2014-12-31T19:01:03Z")
I heard this in a pub and didn’t know whether to believe it or not. It seems absurd on the face of it. What if you can’t pay? Are you evicted? Or could a 30-day jail sentence turn into a lifetime as they keep re-sentencing you for inability to pay? Would this even be constitutional? The ways of you Americans can be confusing, although to be honest the ways of my fellow Englishmen can seem equally bizarre at times. ---
**Author:** ![Alley\_Dweller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alley_dweller/32/430_2.png) [@Alley\_Dweller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alley_Dweller)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2014, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-some-jails-in-the-us-actually-charge-room-and-board/708633/2 "2014-12-31T19:09:01Z")
[Welcome to Prison. Will You Be Paying Cash or Credit?](http://nation.time.com/2013/08/21/welcome-to-prison-will-you-be-paying-cash-or-credit/) ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2014, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-some-jails-in-the-us-actually-charge-room-and-board/708633/3 "2014-12-31T19:09:30Z")
Considering that you can be forced to pay for court-ordered drug tests as part of your probabtion, nothing the US system does surprises me. ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2014, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-some-jails-in-the-us-actually-charge-room-and-board/708633/4 "2014-12-31T19:18:46Z")
> [@aldiboronti](#): > > I heard this in a pub and didn’t know whether to believe it or not. It seems absurd on the face of it. What if you can’t pay? Are you evicted? Or could a 30-day jail sentence turn into a lifetime as they keep re-sentencing you for inability to pay? Would this even be constitutional? The ways of you Americans can be confusing, although to be honest the ways of my fellow Englishmen can seem equally bizarre at times. You can be charged in the UK too, or at least compensation for wrongful convictions is reduced from the figure awarded in order to take room and board into account. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2014, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-some-jails-in-the-us-actually-charge-room-and-board/708633/5 "2014-12-31T19:27:44Z")
> [@md2000](#): > > Considering that you can be forced to pay for court-ordered drug tests as part of your probabtion, nothing the US system does surprises me. I’m sorry, what is wrong with that? Probation is not a right. It is a voluntary program you enter into in lieu of jail. If you don’t like the conditions of probation don’t accept it. There are a lot more onerous conditions that could be imposed such as electronic monitoring, unannounced inspections, warrantless searches… ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2014, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-some-jails-in-the-us-actually-charge-room-and-board/708633/6 "2014-12-31T19:30:51Z")
> [@aldiboronti](#): > > l? The ways of you Americans can be confusing, although to be honest the ways of my fellow Englishmen can seem equally bizarre at times. Especially the sanctimonious lecturing they like to give to the rest of the world about Human rights, freedomTM. End of hijack,the linked article in another post, does not make it clear if the charges are for regular stuff, like food, board, clothes etc, which is insane, or if they are for stuff above and beyond, which they might be allowed to buy. ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2014, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-some-jails-in-the-us-actually-charge-room-and-board/708633/7 "2014-12-31T19:36:34Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > I’m sorry, what is wrong with that? Probation is not a right. It is a voluntary program you enter into in lieu of jail. If you don’t like the conditions of probation don’t accept it. There are a lot more onerous conditions that could be imposed such as electronic monitoring, unannounced inspections, warrantless searches… So it basically creates a debtor’ prison… If you can afford life on the outside, plus this extra penalty, you can go free. if you can’t, you violate your parole and go back to jail, or you stay in jail, or you rack up debt that makes future life that much less desirable. ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2014, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-some-jails-in-the-us-actually-charge-room-and-board/708633/8 "2014-12-31T19:39:24Z")
that’s why they put you on the chain gang so that you can earn your keep. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2014, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-some-jails-in-the-us-actually-charge-room-and-board/708633/9 "2014-12-31T19:47:16Z")
> [@md2000](#): > > So it basically creates a debtor’ prison… If you can afford life on the outside, plus this extra penalty, you can go free. if you can’t, you violate your parole and go back to jail, or you stay in jail, or you rack up debt that makes future life that much less desirable. Using that logic no fines or restitution should ever be imposed. Being found guilty of a crime often has a financial burden. Should there never be a fine imposed? Should victim’s families never be compensated? Should only the law abiding taxpayers carry the financial burden of someone else’s crime? The only way a court has to force compliance with their financial based parts of the sentence is to give out jail time for contempt. The false equivalence of debtors prison does not change that. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2014, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-some-jails-in-the-us-actually-charge-room-and-board/708633/10 "2014-12-31T19:59:19Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Using that logic no fines or restitution should ever be imposed. Being found guilty of a crime often has a financial burden. Should there never be a fine imposed? Should victim’s families never be compensated? Should only the law abiding taxpayers carry the financial burden of someone else’s crime? The only way a court has to force compliance with their financial based parts of the sentence is to give out jail time for contempt. The false equivalence of debtors prison does not change that. I think these two paragraphs from the OP’s link point out exactly what the problem is: > [@](#): > > Legal experts point out that prison fees don’t yield much revenue because the majority of prisoners in the U.S. are poor. Bureau of Justice Statistics data shows nearly two-thirds of state-prison inmates don’t have a high school diploma. According to some studies, nearly a quarter of convicts expect to go to homeless shelters after prison, and more than half are still unemployed a year after their release. > > Prison fees can also create another obstacle for inmates after they’re released: intractable debt. In Florida, the state relied on private collection agencies that added surcharges as high as 40%; in California, failure to pay a fee resulted in an extra $300 charge. And in some cases these fees can land convicts back in prison, costing taxpayers even more. _These programs cost us money._ ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2014, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-some-jails-in-the-us-actually-charge-room-and-board/708633/11 "2014-12-31T20:08:18Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > I think these two paragraphs from the OP’s link point out exactly what the problem is: > _These programs cost us money._ We are talking about two different things. md2000 is using his usual deep knowledge of the U.S. legal system to say that making those who want to not be in jail pay for periodic drug testing while on parole is the same as debtors prison. The article that was posted about charging many fees to prisoners while they are locked up has a lot of problems. Smaller communities are trying to find ways to defray costs but have not looked for the unintended consequences. That is entirely different issue. ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2014, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-some-jails-in-the-us-actually-charge-room-and-board/708633/12 "2014-12-31T20:53:28Z")
I know someone who got a dui here in CA. They were given the option of (I think it was) 10 days in county jail with the possibility of early release or paying around 150 per weekend to just do a flat 4 days in city jail over two weekends. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2014, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-some-jails-in-the-us-actually-charge-room-and-board/708633/13 "2014-12-31T21:16:50Z")
A situation where this raises money is for drunk driving convictions–the sentences are short and the defendants are often middle class. ---
**Author:** ![actualliberalnotoneofthose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e79b87/32.png) [@actualliberalnotoneofthose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/actualliberalnotoneofthose)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2015, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-some-jails-in-the-us-actually-charge-room-and-board/708633/14 "2015-01-01T01:58:57Z")
> [@Antinor01](#): > > I know someone who got a dui here in CA. They were given the option of (I think it was) 10 days in county jail with the possibility of early release or paying around 150 per weekend to just do a flat 4 days in city jail over two weekends. 1st time conviction in OH = automatic jail time OR you can pay to spend a weekend at a hotel. ---
**Author:** ![Alley\_Dweller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alley_dweller/32/430_2.png) [@Alley\_Dweller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alley_Dweller)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2015, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-some-jails-in-the-us-actually-charge-room-and-board/708633/15 "2015-01-01T02:40:42Z")
> [@actualliberalnotoneofthose](#): > > 1st time conviction in OH = automatic jail time OR you can pay to spend a weekend at a hotel. Seriously? Do you get to choose the hotel? Spend a weekend at the Ritz? Or invite your sweetie to the [Sybaris](http://www.sybaris.com/)?