McConnell Appears to Be Killing Bipartisan Sentencing Reform

[wvit1001]

Advocates claim that the bill would pass with a supermajority in the Senate, but the majority leader says it’s dividing his caucus.



In recent years, a coalition of liberal and conservative reformers have pushed for changes with arguments both moral and fiscal. Some success came during the Obama years, such as reducing the sentencing disparity between forms of cocaine. Despite President Donald Trump’s “tough on crime” campaign rhetoric, there seemed to be an opening for significant reform this year in a rare act of bipartisan cooperation. The window of opportunity is closing quickly.

The First Step Act, a package of prisoner-reentry reforms, passed the GOP-controlled House of Representatives by a 360–59 margin, with almost every Republican in favor. Trump endorsed the bill after the midterm elections, giving momentum to an effort pushed by his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, whose father spent a year in federal prison for tax evasion and illegal campaign contributions.

The bill would let some federal inmates participating in “evidence-based recidivism reduction programs” earn credit to leave prison more quickly; the sentencing reform added in the Senate trims future mandatory minimum sentences for drug crimes and lets prisoners sentenced under the old crack-cocaine rules petition for a reduced sentence in line with the recent reforms.

On Friday, Trump tweeted that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell should allow a vote on the “extremely popular” package.

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2018/12/mcconnell-will-not-move-bipartisan-sentencing-bill/577684/

[D2D]

Has anyone considered the cost to law abiding Americans of putting criminals back on the streets in increase crime, violence and loss of life?

[D2D]

Myth: Prison isn't the answer to crime control

Fact: From 1960-1980, per capita imprisonment for violent crimes fell from 738 to 227. In the same period, violent crime rates nationwide tripled.
Fact: Why does crime rise when criminals are released from prison early? Because they are likely to commit more crimes. 67.5% were re-arrested for
   new felonies or serious misdemeanors within three years. Extrapolating, those released felons killed another 2,282 people.₁₈₇
Fact: 45% of state prisoners were, at the time they committed their offense, under conditional supervision in the community – either on probation
   or on parole.₁₈₈ Keeping violent convicts in prison would reduce violent crimes.
Fact: Homicide convicts serve a little more than ½ of their original sentences.₁₈₉ Given that men tend to be less prone to violent behavior as they
   age ₁₉₀, holding them for their full sentences would probably reduce violence significantly.
Fact: Los Angeles County saw repeat offender and re-arrest rates soar after authorities closed jails and released prisoners early. In less than three
   years, early release of prisoners in LA resulted in:
     • 15,775 rearrested convicts ₁₉₁
     • 1,443 assault charges ₁₉₂
     • 518 robbery charges ₄₂
     • 215 sex offense charges ₄₂
     • 16 murder charges ₄₂

42   Weapons sell for just £50 as suspects and victims grow ever younger, The Times, August 24, 2007  http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/uk/crime/article1873117.ece
187 Reentry Trends in the U.S., Recidivism, Department of Justice, 1999  http://www.bjs.gov/content/reentry/recidivism.cfm
188 US Bureau of Justice Statistics, 1991  http://www.bjs.gov/
189 Firearm Use by Offenders, Bureau of Justice Statistics, November , 2001  http://www.bjs.gov/index.cfm?ty=pbdetail&iid=940
190 Homicide rates peak in the 18-24 year old group, Bureau of Justice Statistics, online database  http://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/htus8008.pdf
191 Releasing Inmates Early Has a Costly Human Toll, Los Angeles Times, May 14, 2006  http://articles.latimes.com/2006/may/14/local/me-jail14
192 Keep in mind these are just charges. Each arrested convict may have committed multiple crimes., Los Angeles Times, May 14, 2006
192 Keep in mind these are just charges. Each arrested convict may have committed multiple crimes.

[D2D]

A convicted crack dealer who left prison early as part of the Obama administration’s mass release of federal inmates has been indicted by a grand jury for fatally stabbing his ex-girlfriend and her two kids in Columbus, Ohio. The gory crime drew national attention because the children, ages 7 and 10, were murdered to eliminate them as witnesses in the brutal massacre of their 32-year-old mother.

This week a grand jury in Franklin County returned a 10-count, death-penalty indictment against the ex-con, 35-year-old Wendell Callahan, for the triple murders. Callahan broke into his ex-girlfriend’s apartment and stabbed the three victims, according to a statement issued by Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O’Brien announcing the indictment. The bloody crime scene was discovered by the woman’s current boyfriend, who subsequently engaged in a fight with Callahan before he fled. The indictment includes charges of aggravated murder with prior calculation and design and aggravated murder of victims under the age of 13. “There are multiple charges regarding the three victim deaths because there are different methods to commit the crime of murder and the Prosecutor’s Office typically charges all methods”, O’Brien stated. Callahan is in jail on $3 million bail and is scheduled to be arraigned later this week.

https://newspunch.com/obama-pardon-murder/

https://www.judicialwatch.org/blog/2015/12/20-million-to-help-ex-cons-get-jobs/

https://www.judicialwatch.org/blog/2016/03/crack-dealer-freed-early-under-obama-plan-murders-woman-2-kids/

Early release for non-violent crimes kills!

[Dan]

Good.  It's better to have criminals in prison than on the streets, even if it it feels like you are doing something nice.