KINGSTON, R.I. – June 3, 2026 – For the past year, University of Rhode Island criminology and criminal justice professor Brittany Martin has been conducting in-depth research into how the financial and societal costs of legal fees weigh down some families, and alternatives municipalities can implement to lessen that burden.

Martin’s work caught the attention of the Fines and Fees Justice Center, which has appointed Martin to serve on its advisory board as a member. The organization’s mission is to make the criminal justice system fairer and just by ending governmental policies that use fines and fees for profit. The appointment will provide a national platform for Martin’s work.

“To be a thought partner around what the Fines and Fees Justice Center is going to do next with its research agenda is a tremendous opportunity for me,” said Martin, who in September spoke at a workshop in Houston co-sponsored by FFJC about her research work. “This is a great example of how social science research in areas where inequity is prevalent matters beyond just what we’re doing through publishing in journals.”

Martin will serve on the board for at least the next two years, offering FFJC’s top leadership her perspective on key justice-related issues—particularly transforming how communities across the United States address the harms of legal fines and fees.

According to FFJC’s recent research, about 1 in 3 people in America, or approximately 100 million people, have been directly impacted by fines or fees related to traffic, criminal, juvenile or municipal court in the past 10 years. Additionally, FFJC estimates that 17 million households with children have likely experienced shortfalls in food, housing, healthcare, or other essentials because a parent was saddled with court debt.

Martin being a mixed methods researcher looking simultaneously at statistical data and the human impact of legal costs is what led to her appointment. She says legal officials regularly discuss issues surrounding financial penalties in an abstract way, but don’t know how it directly impacts people.

“The broader public tends to focus heavily on statistics, which is important. But oftentimes I have students who ask ‘okay, this statistic is this number, but what does that actually mean for people? Who are the people in those statistics and what’s happening?,’” Martin said. “I think continuing to highlight how this is a real problem with real implications for people is extremely important while showing the scale with the statistics. What’s happening on the ground matters too, and I’m bringing that extra element to the conversation.”