Sentence for unpaid fines tossed by court
Ruling: Man’s illness, poverty ignored
The Arkansas Court of Appeals on Wednesday threw out the three-year prison sentence of a 46-year-old Booneville man, ruling the sentencing judge was wrong to punish the man for not paying court-ordered fines, fees and restitution.
The 11-page ruling states that Logan County Circuit Judge Jerry Ramey should have favored “undisputed” evidence that Brent Lawrence had been too sick and too poor to pay the $4,504.
With no dispute that Lawrence owed the money, $3,760 of it restitution, the issue for the judge to decide was whether Lawrence could have paid, according to the high court ruling.
“It is … undisputed that Lawrence presented significant evidence in support of his reasonable excuse for nonpayment,” the ruling, written by Judge Robert Gladwin and endorsed by judges Phillip Whiteaker and Waymond Brown, states. “We hold that the circuit court committed reversible error because the state failed to meet its burden to prove Lawrence’s willful and inexcusable failure to pay.”
To prove a defendant is at fault for nonpayment, prosecutors have to show that the defendant has not made a “good-faith effort” to pay, with the sentencing court basing its decision on the defendant’s employment status, earning ability, financial resources and whether the failure to pay was deliberate, according to the ruling.
Lawrence, through his testimony and that of a nurse, provided proof at the October trial that he had been too ill to work as the result of uncontrolled diabetes that damaged his hands and feet so severely he could no longer feel them, and because of a staph infection that had required surgery, the ruling states.
Lawrence also had testified how he’d been turned down for a job at a chicken plant because of his criminal record and because hernia surgery had impaired his ability to work because he could not lift anything. Lawrence also described how he had been homeless after his parents lost their home and they had taken to living under a bridge and eating out of trash cans.
Prosecutors failed to rebut any of Lawrence’s evidence, according to the ruling.
“[H]ere, Lawrence presented undisputed evidence that he did make bona fide efforts to seek employment, which were unavailing because of his health issues, and to borrow money — from relatives who were themselves destitute,” the ruling states. “The state can also meet its burden by showing that Lawrence has been spending his money on something illegal or nonessential instead of paying restitution. Here, not only did the state fail to do so, but Lawrence specifically testified that he had no money for lodging, food, bond, or even commissary while in jail. [The nurse] likewise refuted a suggestion that Lawrence spent money on drugs, testifying that he saw no indication of drug use during his treatment of Lawrence.”
Authorities can seek a review of Wednesday’s ruling before the decision is final. Lawrence was represented in circuit court and on appeal by public defender Beth Wright of Clarksville. Assistant Attorney General Kent Holt represented the state on appeal.
Lawrence’s payment was at issue before the judge over prosecutor accusations that his failure to pay violated the three-year suspended sentence he had received after pleading guilty to residential burglary in April 2017 for the May 2016 break-in at a Booneville residence belonging to relatives.