Can I go to jail for a debt? This is a question we receive a lot. My old answer was no. It is rare that someone in Missouri is arrested over a debt. We no longer have something called debtors’ prison. Even if a judgment is taken against you you can’t go to jail for the judgment. But as the attached article explains you can go to jail for a reason related to the judgment. After a judgment is entered against you the creditor can make you come to court and answer, under oath, questions about your assets. If you fail to show up for this examination, called a debtor’s exam, a warrant can be issued by the judge. If you are stopped by the police while the warrant is running you can taken to jail and held. It is rare for a Missouri judge to issue warrants for debtor exams, it is something we see much more often in Illinois, but it can happen here too. Can you go to jail for a debt, yes, sort of. So call my office and make sure you stay out of jail.

Payday Lenders Use Courts to Create Modern Debtors’ Prison – St. Louis Post Dispatch