Criminal Injustice returns with a new season on Jan. 9, 2018. Until then, we're reposting some of our favorite past episodes. This episode originally appeared Sept. 5, 2017. 

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After Ferguson, investigations revealed that the entire criminal justice system in St. Louis County – not just the police department – levied massive amounts of fines and fees on its poorest citizens in order to fund itself.  It was a wake-up call, but one organization was already there working on these very issues.

Thomas Harvey is the co-founder and executive director of Arch City Defenders.

Find more at criminalinjusticepodcast.com.