The city of Aurora, a Chicago suburb, approved a $50 administrative fee to be charged to anyone processed by Aurora police for a criminal offense or city ordinance violation.
Aurora’s police patrol officers union brought up the idea of charging a booking fee last fall during budget discussions.
The fee includes the cost of fingerprinting and photographing the offender and providing security during the booking process.
It will be collected when a person posts bond. But if a person can make bond but doesn’t have the extra $50 to cover the booking fee, Aurora police cannot keep that person in custody.
The fee then would become a debt owed the city, which can be pursued through a collection process.
Those arrested will not get their $50 refunded, even if they’re found not guilty.
Aurora averages nearly 11,000 arrests a year. So the fee is expected to raise $550,000 annually.
The ACLU calls the newly-imposed Arrest Fee unconstitutional, and says it may encourage officers to make frivolous arrests.
