Kansans on Probation Challenge the Punishment of Their Poverty

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, October 30, 2025

CONTACT: Esmie Tseng, [email protected]

JOHNSON COUNTY, Kansas – Four Kansans have brought a new lawsuit in the federal district court over the unlimited, harsher punishment of poor defendants who cannot pay their restitution compared to the treatment of defendants who have the ability to pay.

The complaint, filed by the ACLU of Kansas and pro bono counsel Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP, challenges Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach and the judges of the Johnson County District Court for extending the term and conditions of the plaintiffs' probation solely because they are unable to pay their restitution, even when they are compliant with all other requirements, and often without a hearing or determination of the plaintiffs’ ability to pay.

“The protection from arbitrary and unequal treatment under the law is a fundamental right under the Constitution, and that includes unequal treatment based upon how much money you have,” said Monica Bennett, ACLU of Kansas Legal Director. “There is nothing about being poor that means you should be treated differently when serving a probation term; but it’s apparent that if our clients and many other Kansans were simply able to pay, their rights would be restored. Were they simply wealthier, they would be allowed to eat in the same restaurants as other people, vote like other people, and visit family in other states like other people—but they can’t while on probation. Our clients can jump through all of the hoops, stay out of trouble, be good employees, and contribute to their communities for years, but the State and Johnson County judges have deemed that compliance irrelevant. Instead, their wealth or lack thereof determines their freedom.”

While on probation, people are subject to invasive searches of their person and possessions without a warrant, are required to report on their movements in and out of the state, are not allowed to eat in or visit places that serve alcohol, and have their associations and habits surveilled. People on probation also cannot vote in Kansas until after they have been officially discharged.

“By barring otherwise eligible Kansans from voting, indefinite probation punishes the poor and thereby functions as an extension of the legacy of the poll tax,” said Micah Kubic, Executive Director of the ACLU of Kansas. “Democracy is inherently about whose voices we believe are worthy of including and who gets a seat at the table. This probation scheme condemns people to lose their seats and their voices simply because of the money in their pockets. That is antithetical to our constitution and to our values as a free country.”

“No right is more precious in a free country than that of having a voice in the election of those who make the laws under which, as good citizens, we must live,” reads the complaint. “Other rights, even the most basic, are illusory if the right to vote is undermined.”

In these cases, judges extended the probation term on multiple occasions so that the plaintiffs’ probation was years or even decades longer than the probationary period originally prescribed by the legislature in the criminal statute. When probation is extended due to failure to pay, all of the terms of probation are extended—not just the outstanding amount of debt. Rarely do the courts review the other terms of probation to ensure they are tailored to the individual’s circumstances.

The complaint also states that when judges extend probation solely to collect restitution—a debt owed to a private victim—the court becomes a de facto private debt collector instead of the overseer of justice.

The named plaintiffs in this case are parents, employees, and members of communities who have worked to keep their lives on track for years. Each plaintiff has been on probation for far longer than Kansas statutes say is appropriate for the crimes they were convicted of for one reason: inability to pay off their restitution debt. Like many Kansans, the plaintiffs struggle to make ends meet each month but they are burdened with the additional fear of going to jail for a missed restitution payment. To make their payments each month, they or their families may be forced to go without necessities. The plaintiffs are representative of a class of hundreds of individuals across Johnson County and the State of Kansas.

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About the ACLU of Kansas: The ACLU of Kansas is the statewide affiliate of the national American Civil Liberties Union. The ACLU of Kansas is dedicated to preserving and advancing the civil rights and legal freedoms guaranteed by the United States Constitution and the Bill of Rights. For more information, visit our website at www.aclukansas.org.