Request By:
Mr. James S. Secrest
Allen County Attorney
Box 35
Scottsville, Kentucky 42164
Opinion
Opinion By: Robert F. Stephens, Attorney General; By: Charles W. Runyan, Assistant Deputy Attorney General
You present several questions concerning court costs and fines in misdemeanor cases.
First, the question of imposing court costs on the defendant is raised. Court costs, including officer fees, can only be collected in a misdemeanor case under these coexisting circumstances: (1) The defendant is convicted; and (2) The defendant pays the costs into the court clerk. KRS 64.340.
Then, suppose the charge is dismissed or filed away, can the court assess costs? The answer is "no". See KRS 64.340. In addition, KRS 453.020 provides that the defendant shall pay all the costs in a criminal proceeding if he is convicted, and assuming he is not proceeding in forma pauperis pursuant to KRS 453.190.
Bell County v. Minton, 239 Ky. 840, 40 S.W.2d 379 (1931e.
We enclose a copy of OAG 75-378, which dealt with the old police court operations.
Question No. 3:
"If the defendant enters a plea of guilty, no fine is assessed, but a bond to keep the peace is required, can costs be imposed?"
If the defendant is actually convicted of a misdemeanor, then the answer in question no. 1, above, applies.
Question No. 4:
"Are there any statutory provisions authorizing costs to be served by defendant in jail at a credit of $2.00 per day when a fine has been converted to jail time?"
We assume the adjudged fine was not paid within the conditions imposed by the court, and the court ordered the defendant's imprisonment pursuant to KRS 534.060 (not a court found indigent).
The answer to your question is that there are no statutory provisions relating to a per diem credit for time served in jail for nonpayment of a fine. See OAG 78-841.
Question No. 5:
"Is there any liability on the county attorney to defendant where a motion for imprisonment of defendant is made by the county attorney for nonpayment of the fine, but where the county attorney does not ask for a $2.00 per day credit?"
The answer is "no". The prosecution's motion, where there is evidence of nonpayment of the fine, is well taken as a part of his statutory duties. But the prosecution's motion, we assume, made no reference to this $2.00 per day credit.