news
September 13, 2016
Watch: A 30-Year March Toward Justice
Watch our 30th anniversary video celebrating The Sentencing Project's work over the last 30 years and looking ahead to the future of criminal justice reform
news
September 05, 2016
How Voting Laws Squelch Urban America’s Voice
Upwards of 6 million Americans are ineligible to vote due to a felony conviction, with the disenfranchised population disproportionately concentrated in urban areas.
Lawrence and Lamont Garrison
Sentences for federal drug crimes are based on the quantity of the drugs involved, not the individual’s role in the crime. The emphasis on quantity rather than the role of the offender, along with the conspiracy laws, too often result in disproportionate sentencing, even for first-time offenses such as the Garrisons’.
news
August 12, 2016
Can Marijuana Reform End Mass Incarceration?
While current marijuana enforcement is counterproductive in many respects, there is little evidence to indicate that it has been a substantial contributor to mass incarceration. Of the 1.5 million people in state or federal prisons, only about 40,000 are incarcerated for a marijuana offense.
news
August 04, 2016
Obama Clemency Moves Needle on Prison Reform, but More Needed
President Obama's clemency grants are an important step in addressing mass incarceration. Now it's time for Congress to act.
Willie Mays Aikens
In 2008, Willie Mays Aikens made headlines when a federal judge reduced his lengthy prison term to 14 years as a result of the U.S. Sentencing Commission’s adjustment to the crack cocaine sentencing guidelines. Aikens was released in June 2008.
news
July 18, 2016
Race & Justice News: Racial Disparities in Police Use of Force Exceed Disparities in Arrests
Study finds that racial disparities in police use of force cannot be fully explained by racial disparities in arrest rates, thousands of Justice Department employees to receive implicit bias training, and more in our latest Race and Justice News.
news
July 10, 2016
Fix the Racial Disparities in Oregon’s Prisons
In Oregon in 2014, 1 in 21 of all African American adult males was in prison. The Sentencing Project's Senior Research Analyst Ashley Nellis and Bobbin Singh, Executive Director of the Oregon Justice Resource Center, urge Oregon policymakers to take action to address the racial disparities in the state criminal justice system.
Christopher Poulos
When Chris Poulos was arrested, he experienced firsthand the difference that money can make in the criminal justice system. He recounts the experience in his own words.
publications
July 01, 2016
Juvenile Life Without Parole: An Overview
The United States stands alone as the only nation that sentences people to life without parole for crimes committed before turning 18. This briefing paper reviews the Supreme Court precedents that limited the use of JLWOP and the challenges that remain.
news
June 26, 2016
New Jersey Is a Leader on Criminal Justice Reform. So Why This Racial Disparity?
New Jersey has led the nation in reducing its state prison population, achieving a 31% reduction since 1999, with no adverse effect on public safety. However, racial disparities in New Jersey prisons are the highest in the nation.
news
June 18, 2016
Black Americans Incarcerated Five Times More Than White People
Black Americans were incarcerated in state prisons at an average rate of 5.1 times that of white Americans in 2014. In some states that rate was 10 times or more, reports The Guardian.
publications
June 14, 2016
The Color of Justice: Racial and Ethnic Disparity in State Prisons
African Americans are incarcerated in state prisons across the country at more than five times the rate of whites, and at least ten times the rate in five states. This report documents the rates of incarceration for whites, African Americans, and Hispanics in each state, identifies three contributors to racial and ethnic disparities in imprisonment, and provides recommendations for reform.
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