Ask almost anyone outside the U.S. what he thinks of Americans, and he’ll tell you one thing: they like to go to court. American lawsuits aren’t all frivolous—then again, only in America will you hear of a woman attempting to sue a police dog for biting her in the buttocks. Our legal obsession is indisputable and a big reason why courtroom TV shows, from Law and Order to Judge Judy, are so damn popular.

In the commonwealth of Massachusetts, however, the mad dash to the courthouse has become so costly that officials are looking for ways to discourage it… for everything other than gay marriage, that is.

Lawmakers in the State House have passed a law that charges a $25 fee for all traffic ticket hearings, whether the driver wins the case or not. 

Officials contend the new fee wasn’t meant to scare away ticket-receivers—and according to drivers who contested the legislation at Gardner District Court, it won’t. The $25 fee was intended as more of a fundraiser for trial courts that have lost nearly $18 million this year.

With approximately a quarter of a million ticket hearings annually, the law is expected to raise about $5 million in revenue for Massachusetts over this fiscal year.

Before July 1, any driver who wanted to plead his case in front of a clerk could do so free of charge. A second appeal with a judge would cost $20. So naturally, some drivers with impending tickets aren’t too happy about the new law.

“You have to pay for the right to appeal? Forget it; that's not right,” Linda LaFreniere, who recently got a speeding ticket in Westminster, told the Telegram-Gazette. “Why should I have to pay to contest something I feel is wrong to begin with?”

Another Massachusetts woman, Barbie Holman, makes the point that police may start awarding tickets even more liberally if drivers have to pay the government to defend themselves.

“If you're found not at fault, you should be cleared of all of it,” she said. “If that's not the case, then it seems police could be pulling people over for all sorts of things.”

To State Sen. Stephen M. Brewer, that’s just tough luck for both sides.

“Is it fun? Is it something I'm happy about? Heck no,” he said. “But there's a mountain of things we're not happy about because of the hand we were dealt.” 

Innocent until proven guilty is still the law of the land. But in Massachusetts, it’ll cost you at least $25 to maintain your innocence.