[AicapAifap] Sentencing Project

[Alliance of Incarcerated Canadians/Foreigners in American Prisons]

STATE ADVOCACY NEWSLETTER Grassroots coalitions in Maryland,
Mississippi, and Kentucky mobilized to counter regressive sentencing
measures by promoting solutions addressing underlying causes of crime.
Diverse stakeholder alliances included civil rights leaders, criminal
justice reform champions, student activists, and faith leaders.
Organizing campaigns prioritized diverse tactics including
communications and grassroots actions to support alternatives to
incarceration like employment programs and youth leadership
initiatives. Maryland State advocates organized in response to Gov.
Larry Hogan’s 2018 crime bills. The governor anchored regressive
legislation as a response to increases in crime. At the end of the
session, none of the governor’s backed bills were adopted, but
certain elements were amended into SB 101 and SB 1137. SB 101 was
amended to include a ten-year mandatory minimum for defendants
convicted of a second violent offense and eliminates parole
eligibility for defendants with prior violent convictions. An
amendment to SB 1137 expanded the existing volume dealer law to
include fentanyl. Opposition to the crime bills included a coordinated
effort to fund evidence-based crime prevention solutions to reduce
retaliatory violence. Youth advocates launched the “ReThink”
Baltimore campaign to respond to concerns of violent youth crime and
shape the conversation on proven crime reduction strategies.
Mississippi Groups succeeded in opposing gang enhancement legislation.
The Legislative Black Caucus along with the NAACP, Southern Poverty
Law Center, and the ACLU of Mississippi defeated SB 2868 and HB 541.
Groups encouraged practitioners to implement current gang enforcement
authority rather than adopt new statutory penalties for gang
recruitment and expand the definition of a gang. The National Juvenile
Justice Network supported state coalitions by developing a toolkit
that included state-by-state gang definitions, citations to
evidence-based gang prevention efforts, and talking points. Kentucky
Community leaders worked to oppose gang enhancement legislation. The
legislation expanded the “violent offender” category requiring 85%
time-served before parole eligibility even if the underlying crime
involves no violence, and enhances penalties when the underlying crime
involves gang activity. The bill expanded the “criminal gang”
definition to include three or more people who share a name or live in
the same geographic location or wear a color when at least two members
have been involved in a “pattern” of criminal activity as
determined by law enforcement. Advocacy partners included faith and
civil rights leaders, students, and medical practitioners. Advocates
organized a petition, placed several opinion editorials offering
solutions to gang violence, and organized student actions. State
advocates cited Mississippi research that found only African American
residents were prosecuted under that state’s gang law since 2010.
Despite passage of the regressive measure, advocates organized 30
state senators to vote no on the legislation. 
Kentucky high school students organize action to oppose gang bill 
Want to discuss your 2018 advocacy plan for state criminal justice
reform? Contact Nicole at nporter at sentencingproject.org Other News:
Colorado – Legislation would pre-register persons on parole so they
are automatically registered to vote following completion of their
parole supervision. Indiana – Governor signed legislation to
eliminate the federal food stamp ban for persons convicted of felony
drug offenses. Louisiana - Advanced legislation expanding geriatric
parole for persons serving life sentences that have reached the age of
50 and served 30 years of their sentence.
Oklahoma – The governor signed several bills addressing sentencing
practices. One bill – SB 689 – authorizes sentence modification
for persons serving life without parole after serving 10 years.
Nebraska – Policymakers enacted an early release requirement due to
prison overcrowding. State prisons must be at no more than 140% of
design capacity by 2020 or the Parole Board is required to implement
accelerated release for eligible persons until the system is at or
below 125% capacity. Massachusetts – Governor signed two measures
enacting various criminal justice policy changes including eliminating
mandatory minimums for certain low-level drug offenses. 
Michigan – Lawmakers are considering closing an unspecified prison
facility. New York – Governor signed executive order partially
pardoning 35,000 persons on parole in order to reinstate their voting
rights.
South Carolina – Advocates organized a rally in support of
sentencing reform to retroactively scale back time served requirement
from 85-percent to 65-percent for eligible offenses.  The Sentencing
Project works for a fair and effective U.S. justice system by
promoting reforms in sentencing policy, addressing unjust racial
disparities and practices, and advocating for alternatives to
incarceration. The Sentencing Project
1705 DeSales Street NW
8th Floor
Washington, District of Columbia 20036
202-628-0871
staff at sentencingproject.org 
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