California, United States of America
The following excerpt is from People v. Murchison, E071758 (Cal. App. 2020):
We now examine whether the trial court's error was harmless. We apply the harmless beyond a reasonable doubt standard. (People v. Aviles (2019) 39 Cal.App.5th 1055, 1075.) " ' "Ability to pay does not necessarily require existing employment or cash on hand." [Citation.] "[I]n determining whether a defendant has the ability to pay a restitution fine, the court is not limited to considering a defendant's present ability but may consider a defendant's ability to pay in the future." [Citation.] This include[s] the defendant's ability to obtain prison wages and to earn money after his release from custody.' " (Id. at p. 1076.)
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