PRACTITIONER BLOG

Read our analyses of developments in Impact Litigation and stay current on class action law

SNAP Lawsuit Dismissed - Mission Accomplished: Increased Food Security For 40M! 
Class Actions, SNAP, Food Security Teddy Basham-Witherington Class Actions, SNAP, Food Security Teddy Basham-Witherington

SNAP Lawsuit Dismissed - Mission Accomplished: Increased Food Security For 40M! 

Shortly after Plaintiffs initiated the lawsuit, the USDA implemented a key accounting policy change that was requested in the class action complaint. The new policy provides protection for SNAP recipients by ensuring that benefits continue for one month after a lapse in federal appropriations. However, while this ensured SNAP benefits were not suddenly interrupted, because Congress continued to pass only short-term budget resolutions, class members faced ongoing uncertainty whether their benefits would be allocated on a longer-term basis. Plaintiffs reported trying to conserve their SNAP benefits by rationing funds, distracting themselves from hunger with water and sleep, and choosing between food and other basic necessities such as gas, hotel rooms for homeless plaintiffs and vital medications.

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Summary Judgment Ruling is Major Victory Against Money Bail
Money Bail, Criminal Justice Reform Teddy Basham-Witherington Money Bail, Criminal Justice Reform Teddy Basham-Witherington

Summary Judgment Ruling is Major Victory Against Money Bail

Money bail sets a price tag on freedom by forcing arrestees to pay an arbitrary amount of money to secure release before trial. It is a common practice in criminal courts throughout the country and is a major contributor to creating one system of justice for the rich and another for the poor. In a major victory, Judge Troy L. Nunley of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California just granted summary judgment agreeing that Sacramento County’s bail system violates substantive due process because inability to afford bail results in a deprivation of liberty prior to trial.

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Case Advances Challenging “Debtors' Prison” for Non-Payment of Bond Supervision Fees in Texas
Class Actions, Bond Supervision Fees Teddy Basham-Witherington Class Actions, Bond Supervision Fees Teddy Basham-Witherington

Case Advances Challenging “Debtors' Prison” for Non-Payment of Bond Supervision Fees in Texas

Anderson County’s bond supervision fee is another example of criminalizing poverty, and another example of how Texas is a major civil rights battlefield right now. Ability to pay is not considered and not paying can mean jail time. In other words, pre-trial defendants can be incarcerated simply because they can’t afford a fee — a modern-day debtor’s prison.

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