Protesters Demand Justice Outside Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office, What Is Planning Next!

Miami: At the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office on Monday morning, a small group of demonstrators gathered to end what they perceived to be needless arrests.

Letters to the office of State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle were delivered by PACT, or People Acting for Community Together. People whose licenses are suspended, because they have unpaid fines and fees, are something they wish to stop arresting.

People who simply cannot afford the fees are said to be unfairly penalized by the law.

In order to stop the practice, the organization said they hope the state attorney will sign a compact that will support police training to give civil citations for minor, non-safety-related infractions instead of making an arrest.

“A history of arrests is damaging. Having an arrest record makes it extremely difficult to function in daily society, as I’m sure many citizens are aware of, though many may not realize. According to PACT vice president Jonathan Sepsenwol, “I find it unacceptable when people are being arrested just because they are unable to pay a fine or fee.”

A large number of drivers in Miami-Dade County, according to the group, have their licenses suspended; the majority of these drivers have unpaid fees and fines for traffic violations unrelated to safety.

The Association of Chiefs of Police Sam Bejar, Miami-Dade Clerk of Courts & Comptroller Juan Fernandez-Barquin, Miami-Dade Public Defender Carlos J. Martinez, and Miami-Dade Police Director Stephanie Daniels all support issuing civil tickets rather than making an arrest, according to PACT.

Past meetings between PACT and State Attorney Rundle have occurred. A statement released by her office claims that after securing backing for this strategy for young offenders in 2007, State Attorney Rundle has consistently supported civil citations.

It is not possible to reverse the decision to issue a civil citation instead of an arrest once the arrest form is received by the State Attorney’s Office, as you are aware. This is the reason she has long supported using civil citations for these circumstances, as stated in the attached 2022 message providing her wish to see these reforms implemented,” her office stated in a statement.

The use of civil citations was initially implemented by Miami-Dade, a city in Florida.