Sian Mughan – The Conversation

A police officer pulls over and tickets a delivery person in the New York City borough of Queens on March 22, 2023. Lindsey Nicholson/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

September 21, 2023

Traffic tickets can be profitable, and fairness isn’t the bottom line in city courts where judges impose the fines

Sian Mughan, Arizona State University and Akheil Singla, Arizona State University

Research shows police officers issue more traffic tickets and judges impose more fines when their city gets the money and when the budget is tight.

Black drivers are more likely to encounter police regardless of how they drive, research shows. Rich Legg/Getty Images

June 2, 2021

Driver’s license suspensions for failure to pay fines inflict particular harm on Black drivers

Sian Mughan, Arizona State University

Driver’s license suspensions increase the probability that Black – but not white – drivers incur more traffic tickets, even after the debt is paid, research shows.

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