A state appellate court has ruled that it's constitutional for Arizona to require some people on probation to pay a monthly fee but not others.
The Court of Appeals on Tuesday denied an appeal by a Maricopa County defendant ordered to pay a monthly fee while on unsupervised probation for drug convictions in Superior Court.
The defendant argued that his rights to protection under the law were violated because people convicted in justice or magistrate courts don't have to pay fees for unsupervised probation.
The court ruled that the law on probation fees is constitutional because it has a "conceivable rational basis" -- helping pay for services provided by probation officers.
The court also said it's reasonable to distinguish between courts because some don't provide probation services.
