Mandatory Minimums

Protecting Marissa at the Expense of the Next Trayvon

Josh Horwitz | Posted 05.29.2012

Read More: Gun Violence, National Rifle Association, Stand Your Ground, George Zimmerman, Stand Your Ground Law, Trayvon Martin, Gun Control, Florida, Marissa Alexander, Domestic Violence, Trayvon Martin Shooting, Guns, Mandatory Minimums, Trayvon Martin Case, Marissa Alexander Case, Politics News
Josh Horwitz

Like George Zimmerman, Marissa Alexander discharged her weapon in Florida. Unlike Zimmerman, she was immediately arrested, despite that she did not kill or injure anyone. Moreover, a judge and jury rejected Alexander's "Stand Your Ground" defense, while Zimmerman might never see trial because of it.

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Mothers and Mandatory Minimums

Julie Stewart | Posted 05.15.2012

Read More: Mother's Day, Mandatory Sentence, Famm, Scott Earle, Mandatory Minimums, Florida Crime, Crime News
Julie Stewart

Mothers dispense and believe in justice. But as mothers like Janet Earle have learned the hard way, mandatory sentences that ignore individual circumstances do not deliver justice. They inflict unnecessary pain and misery, and they must be repealed in Florida and across the country.

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Victim of an Unjust Law

Julie Stewart | Posted 04.26.2012

Read More: Julie Stewart, Stand Your Ground, Florida, Famm, Gov. Scott, Marissa Alexander, Mandatory Minimums, Florida Gun Laws, Gun Laws, Jacksonville Florida, Domestic Violence, Self-Defense, Politics News
Julie Stewart

But because of Florida's inflexible sentencing laws, Marissa Alexander now faces a mandatory minimum of 20 years in state prison, despite the fact that she did not harm anyone.

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Mandatory Minimum Gun Laws Ensure Nothing But Disparity

Julie Stewart | Posted 04.19.2012

Read More: Julie Stewart, Gun Laws, Prosecutorial Discretion, Plaxico Burress, Michael Bloomberg, Sentencing Reform, Famm, New York, Mandatory Minimums, Politics News
Julie Stewart

If you were not already convinced that mandatory minimum sentencing laws are a colossal fraud, recent developments in New York City should convert you.

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Mike Sacks

Supreme Court Weighs Fate Of Crack Dealers

HuffingtonPost.com | Mike Sacks | Posted 04.17.2012

Read More: Supreme Court, Video, Supreme Court Cocaine, Crack Cocaine Sentencing, Crime, Supreme Court Crack, Crack Cocaine, Miguel Estrada, Fair Sentencing Act, Cocaine, Crack, Mandatory Minimums, Politics News

WASHINGTON -- A couple of convicted crack cocaine dealers caught between old and new sentencing regimes had their cases argued before the Supreme Cour...

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A Way Forward on Marijuana

Julie Stewart | Posted 04.09.2012

Read More: Pat Robertson, Presidential Race, Famm, Marijuana, Mandatory Minimums, Sentencing Laws, War on Drugs, Marijuana Legalization, Marijuana-Reform-Laws, Marijuana-Reform, Crime News
Julie Stewart

Despite the growing support for legalizing marijuana, federal law still imposes extraordinarily heavy punishment for growing it.

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How Would Jesus Punish?

Molly M. Gill | Posted 05.26.2012

Read More: Mandatory Sentences, Pat Robertson, Christianity, Prisons, Mandatory Minimums, Scripture Study, Scripture Commentary, Drugs, Marijuana, Jesus Christ, Religion News
Molly M. Gill

The Proverbs repeatedly describe God's hatred of unfairly loaded measuring scales. Those scales include the scales of justice used in our courthouses.

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Don't Blame Judges for Racial Disparity

Julie Stewart | Posted 04.09.2012

Read More: Families Against Mandatory Minimums, U.S. Sentencing Commission, Prison, Punishment, Sentencing Guidelines, Racial Disparities, Sentencing, Congress, Mandatory Minimums, Black Voices News
Julie Stewart

Members of Congress who believe offenders should be punished for their conduct and not the color of their skin should take heed.

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NJ Gov. Christie's Fresh Approach to Drug Offenders

Julie Stewart | Posted 03.27.2012

Read More: Families Against Mandatory Minimums, Julie Stewart, Chris Christie, New Jersey, Famm, Sentencing Reform, Mandatory Minimums, Politics News
Julie Stewart

Governor Christie's plan for nonviolent offenders -- coming as it does from a former U.S. Attorney and Republican statewide leader -- has the potential to be a game-changer.

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Race, Class and Justice in the U.S. Legal System: Still a Long Way From the Promised Land

Marianne Mollmann | Posted 03.18.2012

Read More: Human Rights, Martin Luther King, Incarceration, Incarceration Rates, Amnesty International, Racism, Drugs, Race, Racial Profiling, Mandatory Minimums, Crime News
Marianne Mollmann

Last week, a Belgian tourist said he believed he had been cut some slack by the New York City police mainly because he was white. Indeed, even a perfunctory look at US criminal justice figures reveals that something is not quite right.

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Mercy for People, Not Just Turkeys

Julie Stewart | Posted 01.22.2012

Read More: Thanksgiving Pardon, Presidential Pardons, Prison, Eugenia Jennings, Mandatory Minimums, Thanksgiving, Politics News
Julie Stewart

This week, President Barack Obama won't just be pardoning turkeys. He decided to throw some human beings in the mix, too.

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Tories Won't Budge On Mandatory Minimums: Nicholson

CP | Keith Doucette, The Canadian Press | Posted 10.15.2011

Read More: Justice Minister Rob Nicholson, Rob Nicholson, Omnibus Crime Bill, Tories Tough on Crime, Justice Minister, Canadian Bar Association, Sentencing, Jail, Mandatory Minimums, Harper Omnibus Crime Bill, Home News

HALIFAX - Canada's judges will get no leeway on mandatory minimum sentences as Ottawa proceeds with its anti-crime agenda during the fall session of P...

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New Crack Cocaine Laws May Apply To Old Cases

AP | JESSICA GRESKO | Posted 07.31.2011

Read More: Sentencing Guidelines, Crack Cocaine Sentences, Prisons, Crack Cocaine Sentencing, Prison, Crack Cocaine Mandatory Minimums, Crack Cocaine, Mandatory Minimums, Politics News

WASHINGTON — A year ago, a drug dealer caught with 50 grams of crack cocaine faced a mandatory 10 years in federal prison. Today, new rules cut ...

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Reagan Turns 100: Media Fawning Ignores His Disastrous "War on Drugs"!

Tony Newman | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Needle Exchange, Drug Policy Alliance, Ronald Reagan, Marijuana, Crack Cocaine, Drug War, War on Drugs, Ronald Reagan Birthday, DARE Program, Mandatory Minimums, Prohibition, Politics News
Tony Newman

It's interesting that in all of the press I've read so far celebrating Ronald Reagan, I have not seen one word about his radical escalation of the drug war -- and the devastating effects that had on our society.

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The Moral Urgency of Crack Retroactivity

Julie Stewart | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Mandatory Sentencing, Martin Luther King, Sentencing Reform, Mandatory Minimums, Crack Cocaine, Politics News
Julie Stewart

President Obama has reformed what many considered the most racially discriminatory sentencing policy in federal law. Now, he should do what is right -- apply the reform retroactively to all offenders.

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Reading Charlotte's Web as a Activist

Tony Newman | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Tony Newman, Rockefeller Drug Laws, Drug Policy Alliance, Governor Paterson, Activism, Prison, Charlotte's Web, E.B. White, Mandatory Minimums, War on Drugs, Anthony Papa, Books News
Tony Newman

Thirty five years after originally reading the book, I have realized that E.B. White was not only a great writer, but a visionary and activist as well.

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The Michelle Obama Weight Debate

Peter Gorman | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Dare, John F. Kennedy, Michelle Obama, Mandatory-Minimums, Privatized Prisons, Childhood Obesity, Dwight D Eisenhower, Johnson, Just Say No, Nancy Reagan, Politics News
Peter Gorman

If one really wants to look at a First Lady who pushed her own agenda, one need only look at Nancy Reagan and her Just Say No effort.

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Want to Cut Spending? Invest in Jim Webb's Criminal Justice Commission

Julie Stewart | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Julie Stewart, Criminal Justice, Mandatory Minimums, Republicans, Senator Jim Webb, Families Against Mandatory Minimums, Famm, Politics News
Julie Stewart

If we are honest, we will admit that some of the most devastating consequences of our criminal justice systems do not lend themselves to measurement in dollars and cents.

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Governor-Elect Cuomo Right on Point: Shut Down Half-Empty Prisons

Anthony Papa | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Andrew Cuomo, War on Drugs, New York Governor, Prison, New York, Correction Officer Unions, Sing Sing, Mandatory Minimums, New York News
Anthony Papa

In this time of economic crisis in New York State, when politicians are looking for solutions to reduce the budget deficit, they need look no further than the state's correctional system.

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Sense and Sentencing

Andrea Lyon | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Smart on Crime, Unfair Sentencing, Sentencing, Criminal Justice, Judges, Legislation, Capital Punishment, Crime, Mandatory Minimums, Prison Reform, Prison, Politics News
Andrea Lyon

We have a much better chance of rehabilitation with someone who has been treated and trained than someone who has been incarcerated. It is time to move from the draconian to the sensible.

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Cameron Douglas's Life Is in Danger

Anthony Papa | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Kirk Douglas, Cameron Douglas, Prison, Crystal Meth, War on Drugs, Methamphetamine, Michael Douglas, Mandatory Minimums, Entertainment News
Anthony Papa

Cameron Douglas -- who recently received a reduced sentence (from 10 years to five) in exchange for his cooperation -- is now likely to face a very tough time in prison.

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What Happens to Cameron Douglas?

Michael Santos | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Bureau of Prisons, Michael Santos, Prison Sentence, Cameron Douglas, Low-Level Drug Offenders, Prison, Drug Offenders, Michael Douglas, Mandatory Minimums, Entertainment News
Michael Santos

Of the five years Douglas will serve in the prison system, the next few months will be the worst. The most difficult aspect of entanglements with the criminal justice system is the unknown.

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Call for Prison Reform

Michael Santos | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Bureau of Prisons, Michael Santos, Recidivism, Prison, Anthony Kennedy, Reform, Mandatory Minimums, Willie Horton, Politics News
Michael Santos

Until we make prisoner rehabilitation and redemption real and institutional, we're teaching people how to be comfortable in prison, and they'll keep coming back for longer and longer.

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How to Get Away With Murder: Guidant and Corporate Criminal Justice

Michael Santos | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Prison Reform, Corporate Crime, Corporate Law, Corporate Responsibility, Prison, Corporate America, Corporations, Corporate Power, Boston Scientific, Corporate Greed, Mandatory Minimums, Guidant, Politics News
Michael Santos

After the Guidant Corporation sold flawed heart defibrillators which killed six people, prosecutors negotiated a fine of $296 million -- just 1% of what Boston Scientific paid to acquire it after the investigation began.

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Rockefeller Drug Law Reforms Charge Ahead

Anthony Papa | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Addiction, Rockefeller Drug Laws, War on Drugs, Ondcp, Cocaine, Mandatory Minimums, New York News
Anthony Papa

The dismantling of the Rockefeller Drug Laws is picking up steam. The New York State Assembly held a key hearing to press forward with implementation of the reforms.

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