Soros Gives Big Bucks for California Three Strikes Reform Measure
SACRAMENTO, CA — An initiative that seeks to reform California’s three-strikes sentencing law appears to have the financial wherewithal to qualify for the November ballot after philanthropist and drug...
View ArticleFight Is On to Make Drug Possession a Misdemeanor in California
SACRAMENTO, CA — At the end of February, state Sen. Mark Leno (D-San Francisco) introduced a bill that would make drug possession for personal use a misdemeanor in California. If the bill passes,...
View ArticleColorado Drug Sentencing Reform Bill Introduced
DENVER, CO — A bill that would drop some drug offenses from felonies to misdemeanors was introduced Tuesday in the Colorado Senate. Sponsors said the intent was to reduce prison populations and ensure...
View ArticleOklahoma Governor Signs Prison Reform Bill
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK — Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin (R) last Thursday signed into law a bill designed to lower the state’s prison population. The state’s incarceration rate is first in the nation for female...
View ArticleDrug Sentencing Reform Bill Passes in Kansas
TOPEKA, KS — A bill that would ease penalties on some small-time drug offenders has been approved by the Kansas legislature and awaits the governor’s signature. The bill, House Bill 2318, won final...
View ArticleWhy Is Clarence Aaron Still in Federal Prison?
WASHINGTON, DC — Sentenced nearly two decades ago to three life prison sentences for his peripheral role in a crack cocaine deal, Clarence Aaron became a poster child for the inequities and harshness...
View ArticleSome States Move on Sentencing Reform
With state budgets devastated by the 2008 financial crisis and subsequent slow economic growth, the impulse to incarcerate is being blunted by fiscal realities. This year, a number of states have...
View ArticleDOJ to Sentencing Commission: Fewer Prisoners, Please
WASHINGTON, DC — In a congressionally mandated annual report to the US Sentencing Commission on the operation of federal sentencing guidelines, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) said continuing...
View ArticleDrug Sentences Driving Federal Prison Population Growth, Government Report Finds
WASHINGTON, DC — In a report released Wednesday, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that growth in the federal prison population is outstripping the Bureau of Prisons’ (BOP) rated...
View ArticleIndiana Lawmakers Looking at Decriminalization to Ease Prison Overcrowding
INDIANAPOLIS, IN – Following the historic votes in Washington and Colorado this past week, and continuing the ongoing trend of states relaxing marijuana prohibition laws, bi-partisan lawmakers in...
View ArticleFirst Nonviolent Drug Offender Released Under CA Prop 36
SAN DIEGO, CA — It didn’t take long. Voters in California last month approved Proposition 36, which amends the state’s draconian Three Strikes law to require that a third strike be a serious or violent...
View ArticleUS Has 330,000 Drug Offenders in Prison
WASHINGTON, DC — The number of people in prison in America declined last year for the second year in a row, according to a new report from the Bureau of Justice Statistics. The number of prisoners at...
View ArticleSenate Judiciary Chair: End Mandatory Minimums
WASHINGTON, DC — Sen. Pat Leahy (D-VT), the powerful head of the Senate Judiciary Committee, called for the end of mandatory minimum sentencing at both the state and federal levels in comments made...
View ArticleBipartisan Legislation Introduced to Reduce Use of All Federal Mandatory...
WASHINGON, DC — Sens. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Chairman of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, and Rand Paul (R-KY) introduced the Justice Safety Valve Act of 2013, S. 619, Wednesday, which will...
View ArticleSens. Leahy, Paul Introduce Federal Mandatory Minimum Reform Bill
WASHINGTON, DC — Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) joined Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) in introducing legislation that would give federal judges greater flexibility in sentencing...
View ArticleNew Jersey: 40% of Inmates Incarcerated Only Because They Can't Afford Bail
TRENTON, NJ — County jails in New Jersey are packed with individuals who are incarcerated solely because they cannot afford their often nominal bail amounts, according to a new report released Tuesday...
View ArticleCalifornia Bill to Reduce Penalty for Simple Drug Possession Clears Committee
SACRAMENTO, CA — A committee in the California Senate approved a bill Tuesday that, if passed, would help reduce prison and jail overcrowding in California by reducing the penalties for simple drug...
View ArticleJustice Safety Valve Act Introduced in House
WASHINGTON, DC — On Wednesday, US Reps. Bobby Scott (D-VA) and Thomas Massie (R-KY) introduced the Justice Safety Valve Act of 2013, House Bill 1695, in the House of Representatives. Identical...
View ArticleCalifornia Senate Passes Drug Defelonization Bill
SACRAMENTO, CA — The California Senate Thursday passed a bill that would give prosecutors the option of charging people caught in the possession of small amounts of hard drugs with misdemeanors instead...
View ArticleLouisiana Marijuana Penalty Reduction Bill Advances
BATON ROUGE, LA — In a state with a reputation for having some of the harshest marijuana laws in the country, a bill that would reduce mandatory minimum penalties for some marijuana possession...
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