The Sentencing Project, a national criminal justice research and advocacy organization supports Senate Bill 649. The bill expands sentencing options for certain drug offenses. The proposed legislation would afford prosecutors the option of charging low level drug possession as a misdemeanor and authorize judges to deem a non-violent drug possession offense to be either a misdemeanor or felony after consideration of the offense and the defendant’s record.

Justice Reinvestment was conceived as part of the solution to mass incarceration.  The intent was to reduce corrections populations and budgets, thereby generating savings for reinvestment in high incarceration communities to make them safer, stronger, more prosperous, and equitable.

The Sentencing Project Letter submitted a letter Connecticut's Joint Committee on the Judiciary in support of HB-6581 and SB-1062.  The proposed measures bring Connecticut into compliance with two recent U.S. Supreme Court cases, Graham v. Florida (130 S. Ct. 2011 [2010]) and Miller v. Alabama (567 US ___ [2012]) and clearly reflect a thoughtful attempt to represent the spirit these two landmark rulings.

“The U.S. Prison Industrial Complex: Why It Is a Labor Issue” to be held at the Institute on Thursday, April 18^th, from 8:30 to 10:15 am.

The Sentencing Project joined with state and national religious, legal and civil rights organizations, endorsed a letter submitted to a House of Representatives calling for an end to private prisons in New Hampshire. As an alternative, we urge the House and the Department of Corrections to pursue reforms that would reduce the prison population safely, eliminate dangerous prison overcrowding and save money.