An IC ban doesn't stop you from playing the game. I think that's the point, that going to prison locks you out from the game. It shouldn't work as a 'sorry, you cannot play the game with this character for a week/month'. It's not like prison can be entirely avoided except by sitting back in your city and doing nothing (And I don't think we want to encourage that either).
As Tom mentioned, you can talk to their judge, and also to your judge, and you can bribe the guards. You're not entirely locked out of the game. I would be glad to see more options, more things to do while in prison, but in the end it's an IC event that is triggered in-game. It should be seen as a normal part of game experience, not as a punishment.
