publications
January 21, 2020
Comments to the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Justice on Asylum Eligibility
Comments of Nazgol Ghandnoosh, Senior Research Analyst at The Sentencing Project, submitted to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Department of Justice about asylum restrictions based on criminal histories.
news
December 23, 2019
State Advocacy News: Strategizing to End Life Imprisonment
As the movement to challenge mass incarceration evolves there is growing attention being given to the dramatic impact of life sentences on the prison population. In 2019 national and state groups worked to build the base of support for ending life imprisonment. State advocates and organizers facilitated connections through strategy sessions to support reform.
Dorothy Gaines
Dorothy Gaines's life changed when Alabama state police raided her home for drugs. Police found no evidence of Gaines having possessed or sold drugs, yet federal prosecutors charged Gaines with drug conspiracy.
news
December 19, 2019
A death by any other name
Declining support for the death penalty is a victory, but its presence or absence shouldn't be our sole barometer for a proportionate sentencing regime. Life without parole as the "humane alternative" to death is highly problematic.
news
December 18, 2019
Race & Justice News: Department of Justice Frames Reforms as Anti-Police
The Department of Justice has framed policing and prosecutorial reforms as anti-police. In recent months, other DOJ officials have joined Attorney General William Barr in similarly framing local prosecutorial reforms.
July 26, 2017
Dr. Stanley Andrisse
From prison cells to PhD, Dr. Stanley Andrisse shares his transformation to inspire those impacted by the criminal justice system.
publications
December 17, 2019
One Year After the First Step Act: Mixed Outcomes
In commemoration of the sentencing reform law’s passage one year ago this week, The Sentencing Project has published an analysis of the law’s successes, challenges and the reform left undone.
news
November 26, 2019
State Advocacy News: Direct Services to End Life Imprisonment
Community organizations working to challenge life imprisonment are anchoring campaigns to address mass incarceration.
Marlo Hargrove and David Waller
Marlo Hargrove and David Waller both successfully regained their voting rights after receiving felony convictions and serving their sentences.
publications
November 25, 2019
The Sentencing Project’s 2019 Annual Newsletter
This past year we have seen a growing movement to include people convicted of serious offenses in criminal justice reform efforts.
news
November 22, 2019
Disenfranchisement News: Kentucky Governor-Elect Poised to Expand Voting Rights
Democratic Governor-elect Andy Beshear is expected to sign an executive order that restores voting rights to people with non-violent felony convictions who have completed their prison, probation and parole sentence.
Kemba Smith
At 24 years old, Kemba Smith was sentenced to 24.5 years in prison for conspiracy to participate in her boyfriend's drug activities, a non-violent, first-time offense. For years, her parents galvanized a tireless movement seeking clemency for their daughter.
news
November 07, 2019
Taking a second look at life imprisonment
In most Western European nations, sentences of more than 20 years are rare either by statute or in practice. The United States, with just 4 percent of the world’s population, houses more than half of the world’s population of people serving life without parole.
news
November 04, 2019
Race & Justice News: Police Departments Reduce Low-Level Arrests
Report finds Los Angeles courts’ mandatory community service is “fundamentally coercive,” Philadelphia's African Americans are disproportionately stuck in probation trap, and more in Race & Justice News.
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.
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