cannabisnews.com: Toward Reform of Criminal Justice
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Toward Reform of Criminal Justice
Posted by CN Staff on April 28, 2009 at 14:20:08 PT
By Michael K. Fauntroy
Source: Washington Times
Washington, D.C. -- This week, the Justice Department marks the 25th anniversary of the agency's National Crime Victims' Rights Week. Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. will lead a series of observances, including a candlelight vigil, to mark the occasion.Victims rights are a major component of the efforts to reform the federal and state criminal justice systems. In March, Sens. Jim Webb, Virginia Democrat, and Arlen Specter, Pennsylvania Republican, introduced the National Criminal Justice Commission Act of 2009.
"The elephant in the bedroom in many discussions on the criminal justice system is the sharp increase in drug incarceration over the past three decades," Mr. Webb said on the Senate floor. "In 1980, we had 41,000 drug offenders in prison; today, we have more than 500,000, an increase of 1,200 percent. ... A significant percentage of those incarcerated are for possession or nonviolent offenses stemming from drug addiction and those sorts of related behavioral issues."According to Mr. Webb's press release, this bill will "create a blue-ribbon commission [that will conduct] an 18-month, top-to-bottom review of the nation's entire criminal justice system and offering concrete recommendations for reform."Mr. Webb also said in his March 26 Senate speech that "to look at all of the elements in this system, how they are interrelated in terms of the difficulties that we have in remedying issues of criminal justice in this country and to deliver us from a situation that has evolved over time where we are putting far too many of the wrong people into prison, and we are still not feeling safer in our neighborhoods, we're still not putting in prison or bringing to justice those people who are perpetrating violence and criminality as a way of life."Studies from the Sentencing Project, the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, the National Urban League and the Criminal Justice Policy Foundation show that America's incarceration rate has exploded state and federal corrections budgets, forced early parole for some inmates for lack of prison space, made millionaires of private prison operators, and made more difficult the re-entry of people who can become productive citizens if given the opportunity. The current system also maintains the race-based disparities that have devastated some black communities. According to the Sentencing Project, one in eight black males in their 20s are in prison or jail on any given day.Bureau of Justice Statistics data show that blacks represent 46 percent of the 2.4 million people currently incarcerated, despite being 12 percent of the general U.S. population. Blacks make up at least 50 percent of the prison populations in 12 states and the District of Columbia. The disproportionate warehousing of black men in the name of public safety has helped to destabilize families around the nation by removing potential fathers and husbands.The U.S. - with 5 percent of the world's population - incarcerates 25 percent of the world's reported prisoners, Mr. Webb said. Incarcerated drug offenders have soared 1,200 percent in the past 30 years. Four times as many mentally ill people are in prisons than in mental health hospitals.Recidivism rates and job-training opportunities will be reviewed. In some states, the training inmates receive while incarcerated cannot help them once paroled. California, for example, provides barber training for inmates, but the state Legislature bars parolees from obtaining barbering licenses.There is a possibility that the nation will move away from the incarceration-only view of criminal justice and public safety. The difficult economic times the country faces may lead people to more carefully consider what government is doing with its tax revenues in this costly government service.Mr. Webb is taking a political risk by calling for a national review."Good for him," said Tim Lynch, director of the Cato Institute's Project on Criminal Justice. "With more than 7 million people under criminal justice supervision (prison, parole, probation), a thorough review is desperately needed. You can tell that Webb is new to the Congress, because he is raising a subject that most of the long-term incumbents would rather not discuss."Michael K. Fauntroy, a former analyst for the Congressional Research Service and research analyst at the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, is an assistant professor of public policy at George Mason University.Source: Washington Times (DC)Author: Michael K. Fauntroy, Special To The Washington Times Published: Tuesday, April 28, 2009Copyright: Copyright: 2009 The Washington Times, LLC Website: http://www.washtimes.com/Contact: letters washingtontimes.comURL: http://drugsense.org/url/n8Gdi2ZVRelated Articles:Why We Must Fix Our Prisonshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread24645.shtmlJim Webb's Couragehttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread24640.shtml
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Comment #8 posted by FoM on April 29, 2009 at 13:22:58 PT
Related Article From The Huffington Post
Obama Administration Calls for End To Crack-Powder Sentencing Disparity***By Jasmine Tyler and Anthony PapaApril 29, 2009On President Obama's 100th day in office the White House asked Congress to address the issue of disparity in penalties for the use of powder/crack cocaine. This historic request follows a national lobby day held yesterday that was co-sponsored by a dozen advocacy groups.The day brought together voters from Utah, California, Oklahoma, New Jersey, South Carolina and other states to pressure key members of Congress to eliminate the disparity between crack and powder cocaine sentences.URL: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jasmine-tyler/obama-administration-call_b_193028.html
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Comment #7 posted by FoM on April 29, 2009 at 05:24:53 PT
Obama Seeks To Change Crack Sentences
April 29, 2009URL: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090429/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/crack_laws
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Comment #6 posted by rchandar on April 28, 2009 at 22:20:40 PT:
I Wish...
...More people were like this in NO. Here we have the nation's highest murder rate, and the cops and CJ majors repeatedly preach the virtues of zero tolerance. Not that they're getting anything done, other than badmouthing people who aren't like minded to their monopoly on moral and justice perspectives. We get threatened by these people, every day, just because we're doing our job. You'd be appalled and some of the BS that passes for "education" in these places.--rchandar
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Comment #5 posted by Sam Adams on April 28, 2009 at 21:23:59 PT
Webb article
"There are some hard policy questions in Washington, but whether we should have more, or fewer, people in prison is not one of them. The question is whether politicians remain paralyzed by fear of culture war demagogy. The mere fact that Webb is calling for a commission, a classic Washington way of outsourcing explosive issues like intelligence reform or closing military bases, suggests that members of Congress remain wary."this is what I'm talking about - those who are above the law. Will we be able to close our prisons? Or have we lost control. I think we have something like 15 different spy agencies, they're too powerful to be closed.
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Comment #4 posted by Hope on April 28, 2009 at 19:27:46 PT
Comment 1
People should read that article.
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Comment #3 posted by FoM on April 28, 2009 at 15:53:25 PT
josephlacerenza
I was just reading about Arlen Specter. He was born in 1930 and was a Democrat until 1966 then switched to the Republican Party. I bet he was someone who appreciated JFK.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arlen_Specter
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Comment #2 posted by josephlacerenza on April 28, 2009 at 15:31:41 PT
Specter
He has changed sides in the senate. He is now a dem!!!! This gives the dems 59 not counting Al Franken!!! This would give the senate a super majority. Lets keep this bus moving!!!
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/
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Comment #1 posted by FoM on April 28, 2009 at 14:40:20 PT
NPR: Webb's Prison Crusade
April 27, 2009URL: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=103521020
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