Man Arrested by 7 Heavily Armed Deputy U.S. Marshals over a $1500 Student Loan

Man Arrested by Armed U.S. Marshals

The case of Paul Aker is one of many. The government and government agencies are always seeking for new and creative ways to generate income. This case from Houston shows to what lengths the government will go in order to secure additional cash.

Paul Aker says he was arrested at his home last week for a $1500 federal student loan he received in 1987.

He says seven deputy US Marshals showed up at his home with guns and took him to federal court where he had to sign a payment plan for the 29-year-old school loan.

Congressman Gene Green says the federal government is now using private debt collectors to go after those who owe student loans.

Green says as a result, those attorneys and debt collectors are getting judgements in federal court and asking judges to use the US Marshals Service to arrest those who have failed to pay their federal student loans.

While it is understandable that the federal government should seek to close out loans or other fees it is owed, the idea that anyone can go to jail simply because they have difficulty repaying a loan or paying for a ticket is simply outrageous. The government should have to abide by the same types of rules it imposes on private citizens and businesses, and that is that they can sue in court to recover debts, and if the debtor is in serious financial circumstances, the debtor should be able to discharge the debt through a bankruptcy.

Why should the government have a special carve-out exemption? And why should they be able to use the heavy weight of incarceration to threaten debtors with?

I am not sure that Mr. Aker is a deadbeat or just someone who was not aware that he still owed on his student debt. The government is simply too big, too impersonal, to bureaucratic, and too powerful. It should be cut down to size.

Source: www.fox26houseton.com