Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in California

No, not unless there wass fraud involved, as fraud is a crime. There are no debtor prisons as there were in England.

Mr. Shers is incorrect. There are indeed debtors' prisons here in California, but they are only for people who are unable to pay the amount of child support the court says they owe. You can't be imprisoned for any other type of debt, with one exception: If someone sues you and gets a judgment, the judgment creditor can summon you to court to answer questions about your assets, and if you are personally served with an order for a judgment debtor's examination, the court will issue a warrant for your arrest. However, you will be released within a few hours, either because it is time for your judgment debtor's examination, or because the judgment creditor doesn't show up. If some bill collector threatens to have you jailed for not paying a debt, this is an illegal debt collection practice for which you would have the right to sue the bill collector. If you have an excessive amount of debt, see a bankruptcy attorney.