When You Cannot Pay
RCW 10.01.160 — the court shall not order a defendant who is indigent at sentencing to pay costs
No costs if indigent. The court does not order a defendant to pay costs if the defendant is indigent at the time of sentencing. For others, the court takes account of their financial resources and the burden payment will impose.
Remission. A defendant ordered to pay costs who is not in contumacious default may at any time petition the sentencing court for remission of the costs or any unpaid portion. Manifest hardship exists where the defendant is indigent.
What costs are. Costs are limited to expenses specially incurred in prosecuting the defendant, and do not include the expense of a constitutionally guaranteed jury trial or the general operation of government agencies.
Restitution to a victim, license holds for unpaid fines, and the constitutional rule against jailing someone only for being poor are not set out on this page. What a court will do in a particular case is a question for a licensed Washington attorney.
Sources for this section (1)
- RCW 10.01.160 — Costs, and no costs for an indigent defendant
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of September 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Washington attorney.