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A community where local authorities consistently approached law enforcement, not as a means for protecting public safety, but as a way to generate revenue. >> this emphasis on extracting revenue through policing sometimes led to multiple arrests, even jail time. >> in 2007, one woman received two parking tickets that together totaled $152. to date, she's paid $550 in fines, and fees, to the city of ferguson. she has been arrested twice for having unpaid tickets. and she has spent six days in jail. yet today, she's still inexplicably owing ferguson $541. and her story is only one of dozens of s...

>> the poorest people in ferguson. >>ed poorest people in ferguson and african-americans. >> and racism. >> and you read some of the things. the woman who was stopped for a simple traffic violation who -- a ticket that was $151. she ultimately ended up having to pay $541 and still owes another $500 because of the mounting fines and fees that were imposed by the city of ferguson, and by the courts. and so my sincerest hope is that this report from doj will shake ferguson into getting its act together, because if it doesn't, the justice department has the right too sue them and force them do it ...

A community where deep distrust and hostility often characterized interactions between police and area residents. a community where local authorities consistently approached law enforcement, not as a means for protecting public safety, but as a way to generate revenue. >> this emphasis on extracting revenue through policing sometimes led to multiple arrests, even jail time. >> in 2007 one woman received two parking tickets that together totaled $152. to date she's paid $550 in fines, and fees to the city of ferguson. she has been arrested twice for having unpaid tickets. and she has spent six ...

In 2007 combined with a parking violation, she's been arrested twice, spent six days in jail paid 550 in court fees, all related to this one parking violation. and after paying hundreds more than the original fine she somehow still owed $541 as of december 2014. >> african-americans were being used to finance city government and have their lives ruined in the process. also she tried to pay in installments and they wouldn't let her because the law requires them to pay their fines in full. we're talking about a working class community where $150 is a lot of money.

Reporter evan perez who has been poring over this report. i have been going through a lot of it. it's a very long report with incredible details. i got to tell you it's shocking. >> it's really shocking. in ferguson according to this report minor code violations led to arrests and jail time. the attorney general detailed one example in 2007 with a woman from ferguson. here's what he had to say. >> one woman received two parking tickets that together totaled $152. to date she has paid $550 in fines and fees to the city of ferguson. she has been arrested twice. >> wolf she still owes $541 to thi...