|
Political Factoid
"[A collection] agency takes the
debtor to small-claims court.
Most debtors don't defend
themselves, either by choice
or because they never learn
of the lawsuit.
"The court, overwhelmed with
such claims, rules for the
collection agency, which then
asks a judge to hold a hearing
in which the debtor must
answer questions about his or
her ability to pay. If the debtor
doesn't show up -- and they
often don't even know about
the hearing -- the agency
asks the judge to issue a civil
warrant for the debtor's arrest.
"These warrants can appear on
someone's record, making them
subject to arrest if they are
targeted in a warrant sweep,
are stopped for a traffic violation
or go to authorities to report
a crime they witnessed."
-- [emphasis added]
|
|
-30-
|
