Radio Skyline, Episode 12 (Patreon)

Today's episode was written sort of earlier in the month, but a lot of real-world obligations have kept me pretty busy. Although the housing market is less competitive in the winter months, there's a reason. It's tough to move to a new place and juggle the holidays at the same time. So the message goes out to the people of Macaque a little late, but you get the idea!

In reality, this episode makes light of a real thing in the US court system. People get dinged with traffic tickets and neglect to pay them, and there are penalties associated with that. Go long enough and you can wind up in a lot of trouble over it, sometimes including prison. Then once you're in prison, the odds of being stuck there for other infractions aren't ideal, so an unpaid ticket can wind up being a long sentence.

That's why these amnesty offers are a real thing! While every judge is different, and a special few are insane, there are plenty of judges that will try to offer as many escapes to misdemeanor cases as possible because when it can be justified, it's usually better for the state and the nation not to throw people in prison over trivialities. They may be offered during court cases, but in urban areas where there are a lot of missed court appointments it's not unheard of to offer a period of general grace sessions just to clear a lot of minor cases off the table without harm.