Prisoners with long-term sentences need more opportunities to have their sentences reviewed. Lawmakers and state agencies need to identify and address racial disparities in sentencing. And the amount of a drug involved in a crime should be decoupled from the length of an offender’s sentence.
Those are some of the recommendations from the authors of a yearlong study of the nation’s use of lengthy prison sentences published Tuesday.
The independent task force, co-chaired by former U.S. Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates, who was appointed by President Barack Obama, and former Republican South Carolina Rep. Trey Gowdy, was convened by the nonpartisan think tank the Council on Criminal Justice and its panel of 16 experts, including former prosecutors, law enforcement officials, advocacy groups, victims and former prisoners.
The recommendations come amid growing concern over public safety and rising homicide rates, but task force director John Maki, who has served as head of an Illinois nonpartisan prison watchdog, said it’s important to look at whether long sentences are the best use of public safety dollars, especially as states consider boosting sentences.
A good article: ‘How long is long enough?’: Independent task force challenges length of prison sentences in America
It also goes into the individual risk assessment, not putting too much emphasis on past criminal history.
So let me get this straight. The Bloomington, MN police department is giving a bunch of people criminal records for engaging in prostitution for the sole purpose of getting them to expose traffickers and and be an informant for them. What crap. At least MN doesn’t put prostitution on the registry (unless its with a minor) – but that doesn’t mean you wont be required register in at least some states if you move there. Wonderful work! See article below.
Not a lot of sympathy coming from the Yahoo comment section. And I wouldn’t blame them when it comes to violent offenses. I think reform efforts should first start with cyber crimes where no one has ever touched, and in some cases communicated with a victim. I think it’s appalling that here in Arizona, people are sentenced to decades in prison for looking at pictures on the internet
Independent? Independent of what? Naturally suspicious as I am the reality is they’re turning to cheap tech instead of using expensive incarceration. Given the trend toward contracted private entities taking on the people’s function and responsibility to protect itself and spurred on by ever present sex offender sensationalism ( Crying wolf and cheering when one is slaughtered) we’ve begun to call men masturbating to porn (CP) in their homes “felons” and persons in need of imprisonment. Meanwhile, some weapon wheeling pop cap tweaker, redneck or gang banger gets parole. AND THEN! Have the audacity to ask,”Why is interpersonal violence increasing?.