US prisons are operating at 40 percent above capacity, with half of all inmates locked up for drug-related crimes. Attorney General Eric Holder has proposed changes to the criminal justice system that would reduce sentences for non-violent crimes.<\/p>\n
In an announcement scheduled for delivery on Monday<\/span>, \u201cToo many Americans go to too many prisons for far too long, In his speech, Holder reflected a view long held by civil rights US federal prisons are significantly overcrowded, holding 40 Despite the numbers, federal judges have often been forced to Holder plans to cite the lawmakers\u2019 bipartisan proposals in his \u201cBy reserving the most severe penalties for serious, \u201cMandatory minimum sentences for non-violent drug offenses
\nHolder outlined a plan to free up prisons and keep non-violent
\ndrug offenders from ending up in jail cells. Under a major policy
\nshift, federal prosecutors will no longer push for \u201cmandatory
\nminimum\u201d sentences for low-level drug offenders, and will instead
\nsend more people to drug treatment and community service
\nprograms. Additionally, Holder wants prisons to release elderly,
\nnon-violent offenders.<\/p>\n
\nand for no good law enforcement reason,\u201d<\/i> Holder said in his
\nspeech, which was released in advance of his 1 p.m.
\nET<\/span> delivery at the American Bar Association in San
\nFrancisco. \u201cWhile the aggressive enforcement of federal
\ncriminal statutes remains necessary, we cannot simply prosecute
\nor incarcerate our way to becoming a safer nation.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n
\ngroups that have advocated for lesser sentences for non-violent
\ncrimes, claiming that the long prison terms have prevented
\nlow-income and minority communities from advancing. Mirroring
\nthat view, Holder said that \u201ca vicious cycle of poverty,
\ncriminality and incarceration traps too many Americans and
\nweakens too many communities\u201d<\/i> and that \u201cmany aspects of
\nour criminal justice system may actually exacerbate this problem,
\nrather than alleviate it.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n
\npercent more inmates than they were designed to incarcerate. More
\nthan 219,000 people are currently locked up in federal prisons,
\nwith nearly half of them serving time for drug-related offenses.
\nAnother 11 percent are being held for immigration offenses, and a
\nlarge number are also being held for substance use disorders, the
\nAssociated Press reports. Over the past 30 years, the US has
\nexperienced a 500 percent increase in the number of inmates held
\nin federal custody.<\/p>\n
\napply mandatory minimum sentences against their own will. Sens.
\nDick Durbin (D-Ill.), Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Mike Lee (R-Utah),
\nand Rand Paul (R-Ky.) have introduced legislation that would
\nallow judges to exercise greater discretion in applying these
\nminimums in cases involving non-violent drug offenders. The
\nlegislation, called the Smarter Sentencing Act or the
\nDurban-Lee-Leahy bill, was introduced earlier this month.<\/p>\n
\nspeech.<\/p>\n
\nhigh-level or violent drug traffickers, we can better promote
\npublic safety, deterrence and rehabilitation, while making our
\nexpenditures smarter and more productive,\u201d<\/i> Holders says in
\nthe speech. A study published by the American Journal of Public
\nHealth in June found that the state of California saved $2,300
\nper offender over a 30-month conviction period by sending the
\nconvict to treatment rather than a prison cell. The mandatory
\nsentences were adopted during the \u201cwar on drugs\u201d in the 1980s,
\nbut the US simply lacks the funds and the capacity to imprison
\nlow-level drug offenders.<\/p>\n
\nhave played a huge role in the explosion of the U.S. prison
\npopulation,\u201d<\/i> Durbin said in a news release. \u201cOnce seen as
\na strong deterrent, these mandatory sentences have too often been
\nunfair, fiscally irresponsible and a threat to public safety.
\nGiven tight budgets and overcrowded prison cells, judges should
\nbe given the authority to conduct an individualized review in
\nsentencing certain drug offenders and not be bound to outdated
\nlaws that have proven not to work and cost taxpayers
\nbillions.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n