Cecilia Avila was working at her job at Walmart when she was handcuffed and marched out of the store, not for being a hardened criminal, but for being poor.
Avila had borrowed money from Loans for Less, one of those short-term, high-interest lenders, and found herself unable to pay it back. So Loans for Less took her to court and Avila, unable to get time off work, missed the hearing. A judge then issued a warrant for her arrest.
She was hauled in by an armed constable — not a police officer — and booked into jail.