The sponsor of House legislation to eliminate the disparity between crack and powder cocaine sentences told Main Justice Friday that he and House colleagues are unsure about whether they will proceed with the Senate’s version of the bill.
Robert Scott (Gov)
Rep. Robert Scott (D-Va.), who introduced the House measure last July and has long championed the change, said he is keeping all options open and a final decision should come in “a week or so.”
“The only thing that can really be justified is a total elimination of the disparity,” Scott said. “But the [Senate] bill is better than what we’ve got.”
The Senate passed its version by voice vote Wednesday. That measure, called the Fair Sentencing Act, would establish a new 18-to-1 sentencing ratio for crack and powder cocaine offenses. By contrast, the House version would eliminate the current decades-old sentencing law that sets a 100-to-1 ratio. That law requires the same five-year mandatory minimum sentence for the possession of five grams of crack cocaine as it does for the possession of 500 grams of powder cocaine.
The House Judiciary Committee approved the measure last July by a 16-9 party-line vote. The Senate Judiciary Committee approved its legislation last week by unanimous consent. Like their House counterparts, Senate Democrats initially sought to eliminate the disparity altogether but agreed to the 18-to-1 ratio to win Republican support.
Democrats have argued the law tends to disproportionately target blacks because crack is typically used in poorer urban communities. Scott said any difference between crack and cocaine sentences “makes no sense.”
The Justice Department has expressed support efforts for eliminating the differences between crack and powder cocaine sentencing. Assistant Attorney General Lanny Breuer said at a House hearing in May that the current sentencing policies are “hard to justify.”
