§ 15A-1364. Response to nonpayment.
§15A‑1364. Response to nonpayment.
(a) Response toDefault. When a defendant who has been required to pay a fine or costs orboth defaults in payment or in any installment, the court, upon the motion ofthe prosecutor or upon its own motion, may require the defendant to appear andshow cause why he should not be imprisoned or may rely upon a conditional showcause order entered under G.S. 15A‑1362(c). If the defendant fails toappear, an order for his arrest may be issued.
(b) Imprisonment;Criteria. Following a requirement to show cause under subsection (a), unlessthe defendant shows inability to comply and that his nonpayment was notattributable to a failure on his part to make a good faith effort to obtain thenecessary funds for payment, the court may order the suspended sentence, ifany, activated, or, if the law provides no term of imprisonment for the offensefor which the defendant was convicted or if no suspended sentence was imposed,the court may order the defendant imprisoned for a term not to exceed 30 days.The court, before activating a sentence of imprisonment, may reduce thesentence. The court may provide in its order that payment or satisfaction atany time of the fine and costs imposed by the court will entitle the defendantto his release from the imprisonment or, after entering the order, may at anytime reduce the sentence for good cause shown, including payment orsatisfaction of the fine.
(c) Modification ofFine or Costs. If it appears that the default in the payment of a fine orcosts is not attributable to failure on the defendant's part to make a goodfaith effort to obtain the necessary funds for payment, the court may enter anorder:
(1) Allowing thedefendant additional time for payment; or
(2) Reducing the amountof the fine or costs or of each installment; or
(3) Revoking the fine orcosts or the unpaid portion in whole or in part.
(d) Organizations. When an organization is required to pay a fine or costs or both, it is the dutyof the person or persons authorized to make disbursement of the assets of theorganization to make payment from assets of the organization, and a failure todo so constitutes contempt of court. (1977, c. 711, s. 1.)