cruel: 
    (1) willfully causing pain or suffering to others, or 
        feeling no concern about it;
    (2) causing pain or suffering

Intentionally causing bankruptcy for someone (or freezing of their assets) while also threatening them with jail times wildly disproportional to the crime and damages caused by the crime in order to extort a guilty plea before you prove them guilty in a court of law is cruel. Doing so is the willful causing of mental pain or suffering of another human being. If you've ever known another person in the U.S. that has been wrongly convicted of a crime, you'd think it was a cruel system as well. It is especially cruel to those least capable of handling emotional pain.