Over the past 4 posts I have talked about the issues found
in the American criminal justice system. Currently the United States has the
largest prison population in the world.
The number of prisoners in this country is extremely disproportionate to
our population. This can be attributed to mandatory minimum sentencing laws
currently at work in America. Because of these laws, minor drug offenders end
up serving life sentences. Because these people are not violent, many see no
reason to keep them in jail this long. Furthermore, minorities are incarcerated
at higher rates than their white counter parts.
In fact presently, there are as many black men in jail as were in
slavery in antebellum America. Because of the overflow of prisoners, prison has
become a billion dollar industry, with many companies being paid by the
government to hold criminals. These facilities are corrupt and expensive and
completely unjust. So now that we understand all the problems the American
Prison system has, let’s look at a proposed solution to America’s prison
problem.
In 2015 a bipartisan group of senators proposed what would
have been ground breaking reform for the prison system. The proposed bill would
eliminate the “three strikes” rule. The three strikes rule gives offenders three
strikes before they have to serve mandatory minimum sentences. This rule is how
many non violent offenders end up spending excessively long sentences despite
their non violent status. The elimination of this rule would free millions of
non violent offenders and save millions more from future incarceration.
Furthermore, the bill would allow 6,500 crack cocaine
offenders to challenge their sentences. This bill eliminates old restrictions
put on powder cocaine offenders, so if it were to pass, these convicted peoples
would have a chance at reduced sentences or even freedom. This would create
second chances for so many non violent offenders.
Another aspect of the bill would limit the use of solitary
confinement in juvenile facilities. Solitary confinement is often used as a
punishment in prison for bad behavior. However it has major psychological
repercussions. A New York University study found that solitary confinement could
cause disrupted thinking and sometimes even inability to think. These symptoms
can often lead to psychosis, meaning a disconnection from reality. So prisoners
would come into prisoner with no mental illnesses, and leave with a very
serious one. In youth this can be even more detrimental, as they have the rest
for their adult lives ahead of them. This part of the bill is very important
for the health of future generations.
The last guideline will allow judges to use more discretion
when sentencing offenders affected by mandatory minimums. This would dramatically
reduce the number of non violent offenders serving life sentences. Several
judges have said during sentencing hearings that they do not feel like the sentences
they are forced to hand down are unjust. If judges were able to use their
discretion they could limit the time served and save federal money by keeping
less people in jail for less time. This regulation is perhaps the most vital
one in the bill.
This bill faced oppositions from a small sect of senate
republicans. They said the bill would result in the release of violent criminals.
They cited the drop in murder rates as evidence that mandatory minimums and the
crack down on drugs being effective policies. Despite this the bill passed the
senate judiciary committee on October 22nd, 2015. Passing this
committee means it would move on to the house to face judgment. But that was
the last we have heard form this bill. In fact I am really not sure what
happened to it, a majority republican house may have buried it so it could not
be voted on. This just shows that despite bipartisan efforts, no bill can necessarily
pass without the right people in leadership. Who knows if we will ever see this
bill again.
Aside from this president Obama made several efforts to
reform prisons. Including an executive order
to make private prisons illegal.
This has since order has since been halted by the Trump administration and more
specifically, Jeff Sessions. However, senators like New Jersey’s Cory Booker
are committed to finding solutions for America’s prison problem.
So what do you think about this proposed bill? Is it the
answer to America’s prison problem? Should this bill be reintroduced in the
house? Personally I think this is a start but we need much more radical change
in order to fix all of the problems in America’s correctional system.
