Cite as: 22 CNCA § 983

A. Any defendant found guilty of an offense in any court of this Nation may be imprisoned for nonpayment of the fine and/or costs when the trial Court finds that the defendant is financially able but refuses or neglects to pay the fine and/or costs. In no case may a sentence to pay a fine be converted into a penal institution sentence automatically, i.e., without a hearing and a judicial determination, memorialized of record, that the defendant is able to satisfy the fine and costs by payment but refuses or neglects so to do.

B. After a judicial determination that the defendant may be able to pay the fine and costs in installments, the Court may order the fine and costs to be paid in installments and shall set the amount and due date of each installment.

C. The Court also may send notice of any nonpayment of fine and costs for a moving traffic violation to the Department of Public Safety with a recommendation of suspension of driving privileges of the defendant until the total amount of fine and costs has been paid. Upon receipt of payment of the total amount of fine and costs for the moving traffic violation, the Court shall send notice thereof to the Department, if a nonpayment notice was sent as provided for in this subsection. Such notices sent to the Department shall be on forms or by a method approved by the Department.

D. The Supreme Court shall implement procedures and rules for methods of payment of fines and/or costs by indigents, which procedures and rules shall be distributed to all District Courts by the Court Administrator.

Historical Data

LA 10–90, eff. November 13, 1990.