The New Hampshire court system paid $7,200 to cover the costs of mandatory fines it failed to collect from convicted domestic abusers.
Under a state law that took effect July 2015, offenders must pay a new $50 fine for each domestic violence conviction. The money is supposed to go to a state victims assistance fund, which benefits domestic violence crisis centers across New Hampshire.
But judges did not impose the new fine uniformly over the last year, said Edwin Kelly, administrative judge for the circuit court system. When Kelly realized in April that thousands of dollars in mandatory fines had gone uncollected, the court reimbursed the victims assistance fund from its own budget.
“We felt the obligation to make sure that the fund, that was set up by statute, was compensated as it would have been if the individuals had been properly fined,” he said.
The $7,200 contributed by the court represents nearly half the money the fine raised through May 2016 — $17,550. The remaining $10,350 came from people convicted of domestic violence crimes.
The Republican-led Legislature approved the new fine last June as a way to boost funding for victims’ services, by making offenders foot the bill. Democratic Gov. Maggie Hassan signed the policy into law last July, nearly two weeks after it was set to take effect.
Kelly said courts didn’t have much chance to educate judges on the change. Prosecutors and defense attorneys typically negotiate deals that suspend fines on certain conditions, but by law, the $50 domestic violence fine cannot be waived. Payment can only be deferred if a judge deems the offender unable to pay.
The court did not need legislative approval to cover the uncollected fines’ cost, Kelly said. The money came out of the court “default fees” fund, which is used to pay “unbudgeted expenses of the judicial branch.” In 2015, it had a $444,274 balance from fees the court can impose on defendents who fail to appear at scheduled hearings.
Going forward, Kelly said the error has been corrected.
“We have now educated our judges on the use of the new statute,” Kelly said. “So, we should be on an even keel.”
Victims, however, have yet to see any of the new money, according to the New Hampshire Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence.
The coalition distributes funds to roughly a dozen emergency crisis shelters across New Hampshire that are often overcrowded. Between October 2013 and September 2014 the shelters had to turn away more than 1,000 people seeking help, according to coalition statistics. The new domestic violence fine, proposed by Republican Sen. Sharon Carson, was expected to generate roughly $14,000 for victims.
Even though the court system made the victims assistance fund whole, the coalition has yet to receive the added revenue. The organization also hasn’t seen an estimated $45,000 from an increase in the state’s marriage license fee, which benefits victims as well. The Legislature approved the $5 raise last year and it took effect July 1.
“The Legislature recognized that these funding sources were critical to the work of our domestic and sexual violence crisis centers, who serve over 15,000 victims of crime per year,” said the coalition’s Amanda Grady Sexton. “We hope to see these funds transferred quickly so we may continue to serve those in need.”
While the courts collect the money from offenders, it is then sent on to the state Department of Health and Human services for disbursement.
Spokesman Jake Leon said the court has transferred $19,450 in fine money to the department so far this year. HHS must amend its contract with the coalition before the funds can be sent on to victims, and that change is expected to go before the Executive Council in September, Leon said.
New Hampshire only recently designated domestic violence as a specific crime, when a policy known as “Joshua’s Law” took effect in 2014. More than 5,500 people were charged with domestic violence crimes in 2015, which resulted in 684 convictions, according to Carole Alfano, spokeswoman for the New Hampshire Judicial Branch. This year, at least 1,367 people have been charged with domestic violence crimes, and 410 have been found guilty.
(Allie Morris can be reached at 369-3307, or amorris@cmonitor.com.)