“No Cost” License Plate Readers Are Turning Texas Police into Debt Collectors
&gt; As police cars patrol the city, they ping on license plates associated with the fees. The officer then pulls the driver over and offers them a devil’s bargain: go to jail, or pay the original fine with an extra 25% processing fee tacked on, all of which goes to Vigilant.<p>So, they&#x27;re planning to turn the Texas prison system into de facto debtors&#x27; prisons, and the Texas police system into de facto highwaymen. One more factor to add to the giant pile of reasons for ill-will that the US state and Federal governments have been collecting. That pile can&#x27;t get much taller without toppling, and while I do greatly hope the blowback happens through the democratic process, that process is pretty severely damaged and this looks less and less likely every year.