burlington twp building.jpg

The Burlington Township municipal building.

(Burlington Township Police Facebook)

BURLINGTON TWP. -- A young man jailed when he couldn't afford a fine for flicking a cigarette out his car window is suing the court, claiming it operates like a "modern-day debtor's prison."

According to his suit, Anthony Kneisser, 20 at the time, went to Burlington Township Municipal Court in 2014 to ask for a payment plan or community service because he couldn't pay the $239 fine.

But Judge Dennis P. McInerney, after giving him a chance to call family or friends for money, sentenced him to five days in jail.

Kneisser, of Jackson Township in Ocean County, originally filed suit against the judge, the court and the township in September 2015. The American Civil Liberties Union assigned lawyers to his case Wednesday.

"It was humiliating to be treated like a criminal just for being broke," Kneisser said in the press release from the ACLU "I couldn't believe I was being sentenced to jail for not being able to pay a ticket for littering."

The ACLU said that what happened to Kneisser is illegal because the practice of jailing someone for not being able to pay court fines or fees was deemed unconstitutional in 1983.

Kneisser's suit seeks unspecified damages for a civil rights violation, anguish and distress, and humiliation.

But what happened isn't unusual in Burlington Township Municipal Court, the suit alleges. Kneisser's attorney wrote that it is the court's policy to jail defendants if they can't pay their fine on the day of their first hearing.

The court administrator, Rosa Henry, said Thursday afternoon that she could not comment on the case and Judge McInerney was unavailable.

In court documents, an attorney for the judge and township denied that it is the court's policy and said the judge was acting appropriately because Kneisser had refused to pay.

The $200 ticket Kneisser got for throwing the cigarette butt on the New Jersey Turnpike May 14, 2014 was equivalent to the amount of money he earned in a week, he said in the statement.

He was a student at the time, working part-time as a line cook for $9 an hour. Since he couldn't get the money together and his father refused to pay the fine, he went to his scheduled court hearing May 27, 2014 to ask for a payment plan or community service instead, according to the lawsuit.

The suit states that McInerney's opening remarks when the court session began show that it is the court's policy to jail people immediately if they cannot pay:

"If a fine is imposed in your case the fine is due today. If you're not prepared to pay the fine, you need to make a phone call, make whatever arrangements are necessary so you'll be in a position to pay your fine today. If you refuse to pay your fine, I will sentence you to the county jail."

Kneisser told the judge he was pleading guilty but was hoping for community service as he couldn't pay the $200 ticket or the $39 in court fees.

McInerney told him there was no way to avoid the fine. "Either you use an ashtray or quit smoking. Check out at the window," he said, according to the transcript included in the lawsuit.

He told the clerk at the window he couldn't pay, filled out an indigence questionnaire, and then went back before the judge.

He told McInerney he could pay starting in June. The judge told him to "go make a phone call" and Kneisser responded that there was no one who could lend him money.

"All right. I'll sentence you to five days in jail. Go with the officer," McInerney told him.

Kneisser's father paid the fine when he found out his son had been incarcerated, according to the ACLU statement.

The suit says that 1983 Supreme Court case made a distinction between those who are unable to pay and those who refuse to pay. The attorneys allege that McInerney did not try to determine why Kneisser couldn't pay or whether he would be able to pay in installments over a few weeks, and instead stated that Kneisser refused to pay.

"From the outset, Judge McInerney's motive was clear; the only thing the court was interested in that day was generating revenue," the suit alleges. "...it remains the policy of Judge Mcinerney and the Burlington Township Municipal Court to incarcerate municipal defendants who are willing but unable to pay mandatory fines."

Attorney David Serlin on behalf of the defendants denied that it was the court's policy. He argued in court filings that Kneisser was jailed rightfully because he "refused to follow court procedure."

Rebecca Everett may be reached at reverett@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @rebeccajeverett. Find NJ.com on Facebook.