Brennan Center for Justice essays: on Drugs
Chris Christie:
Drug addiction is a disease: treatment instead of jail
In 2012, we expanded the mandatory drug court and treatment program to more counties.9 I have a simple view on drug policy: Drug addiction is a disease. And it can be treated. Most importantly, every life is an individual gift from God and no life is
disposable. We have an obligation to help people reclaim their lives. And since we have the tools to help those with this disease to save their own lives, we should use them.We need to realize that when we keep drug addicts in jail, we ensure that
they will be a constant drain on our society. Treatment not only costs us less in the short run, but in the long run it produces contributing members to our society--people who are employed and pay taxes, rather than being in jail and draining taxes.
Requiring mandatory treatment instead of prison for nonviolent drug addicts is only one step--but an important one. Treatment is the path to saving lives. For as long as I am governor of New Jersey, treatment will be mandatory in our system.
Source: Brennan Center for Justice essays, p. 22
Apr 28, 2015
Cory Booker:
Minorities imprisoned for drugs at 6 times rate for whites
More than 60 percent of the prison population is comprised of racial and ethnic minorities. This is driven by wide disparities in arrests and incarceration.
Even though blacks and Latinos engage in drug offenses at a rate no different than whites, blacks are incarcerated at a rate six times greater than whites, and Latinos are incarcerated at nearly twice the rate of whites for the same offenses.
The incarceration rate of Native Americans is 38 percent higher than the national rate. Latinos account for 17 percent of the U.S. population, but 22 percent of the U.S. incarcerated population.
And, blacks make up only 13 percent of the total U.S. population, but 37 percent of the U.S. prison population. Today, we have more black men in prison or under state or federal supervision than were enslaved in 1850.
Source: Brennan Center for Justice essays, p. 9
Apr 28, 2015
Cory Booker:
End mandatory sentencing for nonviolent drug offenders
I reintroduced the Smarter Sentencing Act of 2015, bipartisan legislation that would enact meaningful sentencing reforms that would make our federal sentencing policy fairer, smarter, and more cost-effective. It would reduce harsh mandatory minimums
for nonviolent drug offenders, which is the single largest factor in the growth of the federal prison population. If we want our prison population to decrease, we must reduce mandatory minimums.The bill would expand the federal "safety valve,"
which returns discretion in sentencing for nonviolent drug offenses back to federal judges. It would allow persons convicted under the pre-2010 crack cocaine laws to receive reduced sentences, a change needed to make crack
cocaine penalties more in line with powder cocaine penalties. Crack and powder cocaine are pharmacologically the same. The Smarter Sentencing Act would reduce these sentences and save our country $229 million over the next 10 years.
Source: Brennan Center for Justice essays, p. 10-1
Apr 28, 2015
Hillary Clinton:
More drug diversion; more community policing
As a presidential candidate in 2008, I outlined proposals to reduce both crime and the size of our prison population. For example, tough but fair reforms of probation and drug diversion programs to deal swiftly with violations, while allowing nonviolent
offenders who stay clean to stay out of prison. I called for putting more officers on our streets, with greater emphasis on community policing to build trust while fighting crime, as well as new support for specialized drug courts & juvenile programs.
Source: Brennan Center for Justice essays, p. 27
Apr 28, 2015
James Webb:
Drug courts to deal with drugs as a sickness
About half of all the drug arrests in our country were for marijuana offenses.We need smarter ways of dealing with people at apprehension. We need to consider the types of courts drug offenders go into--drug courts, as opposed to regular courts--
how long you sentence them, and how you get them ready to return home. It is a sickness and we have got to treat it that way. We must treat the people who need to be treated and incarcerate the people who need to be incarcerated.
Source: Brennan Center for Justice essays, p.118-9
Apr 28, 2015
Kamala Harris:
Back on Track: re-entry instead of incarceration for drugs
In 2005, as district attorney of San Francisco, I put this strategy to the test when we created "Back on Track," a comprehensive reentry initiative for first-time, nonviolent drug offenders. The initiative focused on personal responsibility by holding
offenders accountable for their behavior. In exchange, participants engaged in intensive reentry, life skills training, and education and employment opportunities to reduce the alarmingly high chance that they would resume a life of crime upon their
release.Back on Track worked. The re-offense rate for participants was 10%, compared to 54% for non-participants who had committed the same types of crime. Taxpayer savings were significant. The program cost less than $5,000 per
person, compared to the $43,000 it cost to house an offender in jail for one year.
We were honored that the U.S. Department of Justice designated Back on Track as a model for law enforcement.7
Source: Brennan Center for Justice essays, p. 39
Apr 28, 2015
Marco Rubio:
Legalizing would be a mistake; reduce sentences carefully
There is an emerging consensus that the time for criminal justice reform has come. But when we consider changing the sentences we impose for drug laws, we must be mindful of the great successes we have had in restoring law and order to America's
cities since the 1980s drug epidemic destroyed lives, families, and entire neighborhoods. I personally believe that legalizing drugs would be a great mistake and that any reductions in sentences for drug crimes should be made with great care.
Source: Brennan Center for Justice essays, p. 95
Apr 28, 2015
Mike Huckabee:
Drug courts reduce both cost & recidivism
Drug courts provide one example of tried & true reform. With drug courts, a nonviolent drug offender can be directed to enroll in drug treatment program with comprehensive and intensive supervision, particularly as they reenter the community. Naturally,
any violation of good behavior during this period results in prison. However, if the individual successfully completes drug rehabilitation and demonstrates responsible behavior over a period of time, the court would expunge that person's record.
When we instituted these reforms in Arkansas, we witnessed a significant drop in our recidivism rate. As an added benefit, drug court rehabilitation models, such as community based corrections, cost the state significantly less than incarceration--
less than $5 a day as compared to about $45 a day. Over time, these reforms saved taxpayers millions, while also allowing and empowering offenders with the opportunity to regain, restore, and rebuild their lives
Source: Brennan Center for Justice essays, p. 45
Apr 28, 2015
Rick Perry:
Treat addiction as a disease, not as criminal behavior
When Judge John Creuzot, a Democrat from Dallas, shared an idea that would change the way Texas handled first-time, nonviolent drug offenders, I listened. As the founder of one of the first drug courts in Texas, Judge Creuzot argued that incarceration
was not the best solution for many low-risk, nonviolent offenders. It benefits neither the individual nor society at large, and can even increase the odds that offenders will commit more crimes upon release. And, just as importantly, by treating
addiction as a disease--and not merely punishing the criminal behavior it compels--Texas could give new hope to people trying to get their lives back. So. in 2007, with broad support from Republicans and Democrats alike,
Texas fundamentally changed its course on criminal justice. We focused on diverting people with drug addiction issues from entering prison in the first place, and programs to keep them from returning.
Source: Brennan Center for Justice essays, p. 89
Apr 28, 2015
Scott Walker:
Heroin Opiate Prevention & Education: HOPE combats abuse
In 2014, I signed into law a package called "H.O.P.E.," which stands for Heroin Opiate Prevention and Education. HOPE invests in Wisconsin communities. It comprehensively changes how we contend with heroin by implementing the twin principles of support
and accountability. To prevent deaths due to overdose, HOPE equips law enforcement officers and first responders with additional tools to more effectively combat opiate abuse, including access to life-saving medicines, and encourages addicts to seek
emergency care for fellow drug users. HOPE also supports addicts with treatment alternatives, especially in under-funded, yet high-need, rural areas of our state. Accountability-wise, HOPE creates swift and certain sanctions to respond to
probation violations instead of automatic incarceration. And finally, HOPE calls upon medical professionals to demand identification for certain prescriptions. HOPE lays the foundation for reversing the dangerous trend of heroin addiction.
Source: Brennan Center for Justice essays, p.113
Apr 28, 2015
Scott Walker:
Drug testing is common sense policy for workplace safety
Drug testing is not a new concept. It is a common sense policy. Take, for instance, some high-demand fields and manufacturing jobs, where sobriety is unquestionably necessary for the operation of technical equipment and heavy machinery.
Workplace safety requires the imposition of drug testing for employees. While some have said that drug testing makes it harder to get assistance, we say it makes it easier to get a job and helps people live full and meaningful lives.
Source: Brennan Center for Justice essays, p.114
Apr 28, 2015
Ted Cruz:
Lower minimums and mandatory sentencing for drugs
As of February 2015, nearly half--49%--of [federal prison] inmates were sentenced for drug crimes. This has contributed to overcrowding. Federal prisons now house 39 percent more inmates than their capacity. It is far from clear whether this dramatic
increase in incarceration for drug crimes has had enough of an effect on property and violent crime rates to justify the human toll of more incarceration.Given the undeniable costs and dubious benefits of mass, longterm incarceration of nonviolent
drug offenders, Congress should take steps to give judges more flexibility in sentencing those offenders. The Smarter Sentencing Act of 2015, which was introduced by Sens. Mike Lee (R-UT) and Dick Durbin (D-IL), and of which I am an original cosponsor,
is a significant stride in that direction. Among other things, the bill lowers minimum sentences, cutting them in half, to give judges more flexibility in determining the appropriate sentence based on the unique facts and circumstances of each case.
Source: Brennan Center for Justice essays, p. 33-4
Apr 28, 2015
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