The legislation would eliminate the 100-to-1 sentencing ratio disparities for crack and powder offenses. Congress enacted the harsher penalties for crack use during the street violence epidemic of the 1980s.
Stories Tagged ‘House Judiciary subcommittee on crime terrorism and homeland security’
Thornburgh Urges Revamp of Federal Criminal Code
The former Attorney General said at a House hearing that many statutes in the Federal Criminal Code unfairly punish individuals who do not have an “evil-meaning mind.”
At BOP Oversight Hearing, Conyers Asks About Prison Life
Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.) asked Bureau of Prisons Director Harley Lappin to give him a general assessment of life in U.S. prisons, which is where his wife could be spending the next five years of her life.
Former U.S. Attorney Sullivan Testifies In Favor Of Mandatory Minimum Sentences
Former Massachusetts U.S. Attorney Michael J. Sullivan said that the risk of a long mandatory sentence entices drug offenders to cooperate during investigations.
Judge Will Treat Cocaine, Crack Offenses Equally In Sentencing
D.C. U.S. District Court Judge Paul Friedman became one of the first judges to employ the same sentencing guidelines for powder cocaine and crack offenses, The Blog of the Legal Times reported today.
Breuer Continues To Support Efforts To Fix Disparity In Cocaine Sentencing
Assistant Attorney General Lanny Breuer stood in support today of Congress’s efforts to eliminate the disparity between crack and powder cocaine sentencing.
