Kudos to Obama and Holder: Mandatory minimum' sentences to end for many drug offenders

[cali]

Federal prosecutors will no longer seek long, "mandatory minimum" sentences for many low-level, nonviolent drug offenders, under a major shift in policy aimed at turning around decades of explosive growth in the federal prison population, Atty. Gen. Eric H. Holder Jr. planned to announce Monday.

"Too many Americans go to too many prisons for far too long, and for no good law enforcement reason," Holder planned to tell the American Bar Assn. meeting here, according to an advance text of his remarks. "While the aggressive enforcement of federal criminal statutes remains necessary, we cannot simply prosecute or incarcerate our way to becoming a safer nation."

Under the new policy, prosecutors would send fewer drug offenders to federal prison for long terms and send more of them to drug treatment and community service. A Justice Department spokesman said officials had no estimate of how many future prosecutions would be affected.

The change responds to a major goal of civil rights groups, which say long prison sentences have disproportionately hurt low-income and minority communities.

<snip>

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-holder-crime-20130812,0,464603.story

This is a very big deal and the administration deserves plaudits for it.

[MindPilot]

1. We should heap praise on these clowns

for finally noticing something the rest of us have known for decades?

Brought to you by the administration that always seems to be late to the party.

[MADem]

3. At least they show up....do you seriously think the RMoney administration would have trod this path?

Or would they have just built a few dozen more low to medium security "for profit" prisons?

[MindPilot]

4. Oh yeah, the "it could've been worse with the other guy" strawman.

And exactly when did the Obama administration issue that moratorium on prison construction?

[MADem]

15. Not "could have." Would have. But we know where your head is at! nt

[KharmaTrain]

92. This Was Predictable...

...he's either too late or not enough. You'll never win with those who want this administration to fail for whatever their agendas may be...

[MADem]

103. +1!!! nt

[dbackjon]

28. True - the hold your nose Admin

[uponit7771]

29. Many of the bashers and pure left do.

[duhneece]

38. I want to celebrate EVERY step in the right direction

Without celebrations of the baby steps toward justice, I get overwhelmed & full of despair. Action and celebration are my antidotes. Sacred activism is my game.

[uhnope]

41. EXACTLY. I don't understand the haters and anti-Obama zealots here anymore. nt

[mountain grammy]

75. Agreed!

[beveeheart]

84. I agree with you also.

[MADem]

101. What a brilliant POV! nt

[obxhead]

100. When the bar is set at RMoney

You don't have to spit very far to be "better."

[MADem]

102. That's not where the bar was set, but that was the choice the last time around. nt

[cali]

9. in a word: Yes.

Credit where credit is due. Yes, this is a longstanding perversion of justice. You or I noticing it long ago did shit to change it.

President Obama and Holder have.

[uhnope]

43. yay. exactly right

[dennis4868]

11. I think Obama noticed this a long time ago as well...

it's one thing to know it but it's an entirely another thing to implement the changes, getting people on board who Obama needs on this like Don't Ask Don't Tell. We are armchair QBs here on DU but have no responsibility to actually implement change, which can take time. Being president is very different then posting on DU with your opinions.

Many people here on DU don't get this and want change in 10 minutes. Policy in Washington does not work that way.

[groundloop]

21. That, plus IMO this is just a workaround to avoid the minimum sentencing laws

IMO it took quite a while to come up with a plan to work around the minimum sentencing laws. This isn't any kind of change to the law, which of course would require the cooperation of the repub controlled House (which WON'T happen). This is just the best that the administration can come up with to keep the minimum sentencing laws from being used.

While there are issues that I disagree with the President about, in general I think he's done a hell of a job (especially given the obstruction he's faced by the do-nothing House).

[Comrade Grumpy]

55. Federal sentencing reform is garnering bipartisan support. Something could actually pass this year.

Obama and Holder deserve kudos for Holder's speech today. The Department of Justice will now act to reduce the resort to mandatory minimums. And the administration will push Congress to get those bills passed. This is good news.

[Isoldeblue]

46. You said what I was thinking, better than I could have!

Thank you!

It's so easy to bitch and moan and be critical. As if they know what it's like to being in the president's position, fighting against powerful lobbies and the like....

[arely staircase]

19. damned if they do damned if they don't nt

[George II]

20. HOLY COW!!!

Gee, it only took 13 minutes for the first negative response to a very positive development. Unbelievable.

"Late to the party"? Certainly not true, but at least they showed up at the party!!

By the way, if it was something "the rest of us have known for decades", what did YOU do during those decades to resolve this?

[Logical]

23. Can you just be happy about this! Jesus, quit whining! n-t

[fredamae]

37. Politically speaking-

they now have No choice....otherwise, it would still be business as usual.
They aren't saying a g'damned thing that We haven't been saying To them for fkg Decades!

But, the consequences are now widely known and the voice is now so loud--they've no choice.

However, as we've all recognized-words are Cheap- I'm not cheering until we see how well this works--for Us.

[Hekate]

63. "They"? "For decades"? How long have Obama and Holder been in their respective offices?

Christ on a trailer hitch.

[fredamae]

67. Release the "Hitch"

"They" are not specific to This admin, but rather all of 'em since Nixon....

[demwing]

40. Yeah, I TOLD everyone they should have voted for you

but no one listened, sorry

[Cali_Democrat]

42. Thank you so much for this post

PERFECT example of why I no longer take the majority of posters here seriously.

[uhnope]

44. yeah I gave up a long time ago

it's mostly venting, whining, negativity, covert right wingers...
I only vent!

[Pretzel_Warrior]

49. You're fired

Your tenure as board diplomat has been a stormy one. With regret, I am relieving you of your duties.

[leftynyc]

59. Keep it up

If all you do is trash the President no matter what he does, he'll have no reason to take you (and those with the same attitude) seriously. Keep dragging him down and you'll get to complain about the next republican schmuck in the White House (with a pub controlled congress which is probably what you want anyway). Then we'll get more scalia's on the court and that'll just make your day complete.

And this is why nobody with any power takes this site seriously and why you're losing long time DUers every single fucking day.

[NeonDog]

83. Bitching is easy..

...trying to govern with the winds of opposition not so much...As in: Tea Party, republiCONs, Congress, Supreme Court, Fox News and whiney leftists who undermine progress and allow a Bush/Cheney to get elected....

[spanone]

2. k&r..

[RKP5637]

5. K&R! n/t

[Autumn]

6. Recommended. This is a very good thing.

[1-Old-Man]

7. Hmmm, everything is going to change because of a speech Holder hasn't made yet.

I believe the speech is to be made before the ABA later this morning. What he will say remains to be heard but more important is how that flows down to the many federal prosecutors. Anyone who expects the jails to empty later today is probably going to be disappointed.

[cali]

10. Actually, the speech has been leaked. We do know what he'll say.

And if you'd clicked the link you'd know that. but whatever.

[MADem]

16. +1 nt

[1-Old-Man]

33. Yes, we do, and I know that. But what's that got to do with action?

If you'd read what I wrote you'd have understood that much. Holder, who is about as worthless as John Ashcroft was, can say anything he likes but how does that find its way to action? Where? When? How about retroactivity? You know, all those things that have real meaning, unlike an Administration Official making happy with the base by delivering what are ultimately meaningless speeches.

I'm still looking for some of that change we can believe in. In this case I'll believe it when they let a few tens of thousands of minor drug offenders out of prison, and you can bet your entire real estate holdings (modified from earlier version) Holder isn't going to cause that to happen tomorrow.

[questionseverything]

45. i think we can file this under

throw us a bone politics and that being said,we need a bigger bone

[Comrade Grumpy]

56. Holder has directed federal prosecutors to go easy on resorting to mandatory minimums.

That is a real, concrete step, and it will begin to reduce the prison population.

The Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 has already seen thousands of crack offenders get out of prison early.

But there are still more than 100,000 federal drug war prisoners, so we have a ways to go.

[Dash87]

8. Our whole system is terrible

Prison doesn't help drug users. It just puts them around other drug users and ruins their lives even more.

They need help by physicians and councilors. Prison isn't going to help them, and there's so obviously a monetary incentive behind the drug war, making it even more infuriating.

If we were really fighting a "drug war," we would have a heavy police presence in the known cartel zones of operations. Nobody cares about them, though - why deport drug mules when we can just throw our citizens in jail for 20 years for holding an ounce of crack or heroin? $$$$$$$$$$

[rhett o rick]

12. Bravo if it's more than rhetoric. nm

[msanthrope]

13. You might benefit from educating yourself on the "Smart on Crime" policy of

criminal justice that has been advocated by Kamala Harris and AG Holder. This is a major policy change that redirects the charging and sentencing priorities of every single DOJ office in the nation. It's been ongoing for a while, and frankly, could use the help of Congress who must actually pass the law that would allow federal judges to disregard the sentencing minimums.

The Executive Branch can only make policy decisions, and while it's easy to dismiss that as 'rhetoric,' facile denigration provides easy cover for the Congress, who must do the heavy lifting of the making decent, responsible legislation.

In other words, Rhett--ODS allows Congress to escape Article 1 responsibility for changing the laws. That's to the detriment of prisoners everywhere.

[Bunnahabhain]

14. Late to the party

beats never arriving to the party. This is a good thing and I'm glad the administration is doing it.

[SunSeeker]

17. K & R

[Grateful for Hope]

18. K&R

[Logical]

22. Great job! Great news! n-t

[lillypaddle]

24. Thanks, Cali

We don't always agree on everything, but I'm always grateful for your fairness.

[LostOne4Ever]

25. Woohoo

This is great!!!

I wish it would have come sooner, but whatever gets results should be applauded!!!

[on point]

26. A good half step. Now show real leadership n end the war on drugs

Treatment is better for society and the individuals.

[BlueJazz]

27. Good. Drug dealers go to prison....Hedgefund managers go to Hawaii

[justiceischeap]

30. How will this effect already incarcerated non-violent drug offenders?

Will they be freed? Or do they have to serve out their sentences? How about the ones living in 3 strikes states and were arrested for non-violent drug charges as their 3rd strike?

[heaven05]

31. big, big

deal. Bout time someone finally woke the fuck up!

[L0oniX]

32. Once you have a record there will be punitive punishment for the rest of your life.

You won't get that job or if you get one it will not pay enough to sustain you ...and your mugshot and arrest info will be on Google page one. My point is that there should be a reconciliation where those that really want to succeed should be able to do so. Punitive punishment in many cases will only increase the chance of incarceration.

[gulliver]

68. ^^^This!

In the information age, a record is now cruel and unusual punishment. Some states allow you to get some offenses expunged, but it is far too few. And you are absolutely right. It just creates recidivism. The drug laws need to go, and records from them need to be erased. And there should be something similar to a "parole hearing" for all records that would let them be expunged under appropriate circumstances. We shouldn't be getting in the way of people who want to change.

[blackspade]

34. Bravo.

A ray of sunshine after years long shit storms.

[Downtown Hound]

35. Now make it retroactive.

A lot of people should have their records cleared.

[Coyotl]

39. ^^^^^^ THIS ^^^^^^^ +1000000000000000

Drug amnesty!

[gulliver]

69. +1

[Lee-Lee]

36. As I said before, not much real effect here

What percentage of small, non-violent drug offenders actually face Federal charges?

I bet less than 2%.

Those are almost always state/local charges.

The DEA and FBI don't go after small, non-violent offenders, unless they are doing so to try and flip them to go after bigger fish. Even if they did, the US Attorneys office doesn't want to bother with small cases, they only want cases worthy of press releases to build resumes on.

The only time small, non-violent offenders get Federal charges is when they are caught on places with primarily Federal jurisdiction for LE- National Parks, BLM land, or at border crossings.

So a big speech, very little impact real world. And most likely it will have a disparate impact to favor whites, who are more likely to be busted for drugs out camping in a national forest, and less on the epidemic of such charges in inner cities.

[LuvNewcastle]

51. I didn't think about that, but you're right.

It's a step in the right direction, though. It's frustrating to see slow, gradual change when radical reform is needed, but it's better than leaving things as they were.

[Go Vols]

52. Sad but true

[Just Saying]

78. I don't know all the facts

But this is some information:

Federal: On Dec. 31, 2011, there were 197,050 sentenced prisoners under federal jurisdiction. Of these, 94,600 were serving time for drug offenses, 14,900 for violent offenses, 10,700 for property offenses, and 69,000 for "public order" offenses (of which 22,100 were sentenced for immigration offenses, 29,800 for weapons offenses, and 17.100 for "other&quot . - See more at: http://www.drugwarfacts.org/cms/Prisons_and_Drugs#sthash.6ISwt9RT.dpuf

http://www.drugwarfacts.org/cms/Prisons_and_Drugs#sthash.6ISwt9RT.dpbs

It doesn't break down low level but I believe the 94k+ are non-violent. Evenif we consider only 10% of those to be affected it's still nearly 10,000 people who would go into drug treatment or community service rather than prison.

[Spitfire of ATJ]

47. When we hear "prison population" a lot of these people are in for short sentences....

But that's actually damning news because it demonstrates that there is a huge turnover. This isn't the same people being cycled through, it's a bunch of ordinary citizens (a lot of them "poor"*) being thrown into the system.

*"Poor" defined as working a typical job that's non-managerial where the employee is easily replaced.

[Pretzel_Warrior]

48. Thank you for acknowledging this

[ProSense]

50. ACLU: How to Process Eric Holder’s Major Criminal Law Reform Speech

ACLU: How to Process Eric Holder’s Major Criminal Law Reform Speech
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10023451453

[Warren DeMontague]

53. Good. Hopefully this move isn't to provide cover for more arrests of medical marijuana patients.

The drug war is a failed joke.

[spanone]

54. a big FUCK YOU to ronnie reagan

[uhnope]

57. ACLU confirms this "a big deal"!!!

http://www.aclu.org/blog/criminal-law-reform-racial-justice/how-process-eric-holders-major-criminal-law-reform-speech

[sheshe2]

58. K&R!

[Maedhros]

60. This is a big step in the right direction!

More, please.

[Texano78704]

61. Progress ...

Let me know when they decide to stop rounding up people of color and convicting them at twice the rate of white people.

[warrprayer]

62. I already know too much about Holder

I'll take anything at this point. Yes, it is a step in a positive direction.

[Heather MC]

64. Great but......

Are they going to take it a step further and seal their records so they can get decent jobs, and be able to vote? It won't do them any good to be free if their prisob sentence remains a chain around their necks

[Hekate]

65. KnR, cali. This is a bfd -- even the ACLU thinks so.

Just not good enough for those suffering from terminal ODS, but there you have it; nothing will cure them.

[malaise]

66. Holy Shite

Hell just froze over - Cali just praised Obama and Holder - good on yah.

[cali]

72. hardly the first time or even the first time in recent months

I get an undeserved rap for being an "Obama hater". I wish some of you folks would learn to discern the difference between criticizing policy and hate.

[malaise]

73. LOL

OK

[corkhead]

74. it must be détente day

I also saw a couple OPs today from a certain 6 figure poster that were not the usual childish insults of the non-cheerleaders.

[dgauss]

70. My idea of how to respond to policy decisions is pretty simple.

Even if I think this administration has done things I don't agree with, be supportive of the things they do that I do agree with.

And

Even if I think this administration has done many things I agree with, be critical of the things they do that I don't agree with.


For a longtime friend or close relative, this approach would be callous and narcissistic. For politics it seems necessary.


In this case, credit to the administration, it's the right direction to go.

[canoeist52]

71. How many low-level, nonviolent drug offenders will be affected?

"A Justice Department spokesman said officials had no estimate of how many future prosecutions would be affected."

While it feels like a step in the right direction, I'd wait on the details as it may be just another trial balloon.

[leftstreet]

82. How many low-level, nonviolent drug offenses will become Federal?

What I'd wanna know

Especially with the med marijuana feds/states 'troubles'

[liberal_at_heart]

86. that is a good question.

[Peacetrain]

76. Excellent

[burnodo]

77. "While the aggressive enforcement of federal criminal statutes remains necessary"

and just why is that?

[loyalsister]

79. Kudos to Cali for posting something positive about the president and the AG

[Deep13]

80. ...right after Congress changes the law.

Which will not happen. Not unless POTUS wants to issue pardons for every 2-bit drug offender that manages to get arrested in DC, any national park, any Fed. facility, or caught in the net of catching bigger fish.

[burnodo]

90. +1

[Just Saying]

81. Good move!

Now we just need to end the war on drugs and legalize pot.

Cali, I appreciate you posting this. I have to tell you, you're a good example of why I don't block people. I may disagree with you adamantly on some issues, but I've found that we have common ground on several others.

[Blue Owl]

85. Some progress against the war on some drugs

[annm4peace]

87. Will Holder do anything to help end the CA Prisoner hunger strike?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10023454677

Day 36 of California Hunger Strike: Hundreds Still Protesting Isolation Policies

http://prisonerhungerstrikesolidarity.wordpress.com/education/

More than 30,000 California prisoners initiated an indefinite hunger strike. They are calling on the Governor and the CDCR to meet their 5 Core Demands.

California holds nearly 12,000 people in extreme isolation at a cost of over $60 million per year. The cells have no windows, and no access to fresh air or sunlight. The United Nations condemns the use of solitary confinement for more than 15 days as torture, yet many people in California state prisons have been encaged in solitary for 10 to 40 years!

In 2011, over 12,000 prisoners and their family and community members participated in statewide hunger strikes protesting the inhumane conditions in the SHU. California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) promised meaningful reform. In February 2013, prisoners announced that another hunger strike would begin July 8th because of CDCR’s failure to fulfill that promise.

**********
IN PRISONS all across the US

8 x 8 cell 23 hours for 365 a year for 40 years

[dreamnightwind]

88. A rare chance for me to give them praise

It's a small step, but looks like a good one, and for that I am grateful.

[eridani]

89. Indeed. I've been waiting for something like this for five years.

Now it's happening, and better late than never.

[morningfog]

91. As long as man mins are on the books, prosecutors

will use them. This may be a good step or it may be superficial, time will tell.

[soryang]

93. this is a calculated distraction from what they've been doing at justice

protecting the secret unlawful collection of information by the so called national security community on all Americans. This is what Holder and Obama have been doing in the Federal Courts since day one.

Why else did they wait five years?

the minimum mandatories have been forced on most states as well by federal funding requirements for law enforcement. what have they done about that?

[burnodo]

98. +1

At best, this "reform" is lipstick on a pig

[Warren Stupidity]

94. Meanwhile the doj continues to persecute medical marijuana

And the dumb-ass decades long failed war on people getting high from unapproved sources continues.

Yeah, great, people in our vast gulag won't do as much time. I'm so impressed.

[cali]

95. It's a step and it's a substantial one.

I'm happy to see it.

[Warren Stupidity]

96. It is a small reform of a rotten system.

I refuse to celebrate.

[cali]

97. fine. don't celebrate, but do try to remember that reform has to start somewhere.

[TransitJohn]

99. But they'll keep busting Medical Marijuana Dispensaries, I'm sure.

It's still welcome news, but what is with this admin?