The new sentencing commission chair, Carlton Reeves, said during a public hearing in October that setting new guidelines for compassionate release is a top priority. WASHINGTON, D.C. The United States Sentencing Commission today unanimously approved its policy priorities for the 2022-2023 amendment year ending May 1, 2023. [24] Human Rights Watch, Every 25 Seconds, p. 4. On appeal, he challenged the district courts denial of his motion for a [23] The criminalization of drug possession has served as an excuse over the last several decades for authorities to significantly increase the presence of police in these communities and enforce laws on simple drug possession in racially discriminatory ways. [67] The prospective sentencing reforms incorporated in the First Step Act, including reduced sentencing enhancements for prior drug offenses, clarification that the 25-year mandatory minimum for certain firearm offenses is reserved for true recidivists, and expanded safety valve relief for certain nonviolent drug offenses, will help to limit excessive sentences in the future. 3553(a). It also creates a process by which people with federal marijuana convictions can have their records for these convictions expunged, in some cases automatically, or can be resentenced. The White House The U.S. Department of Justice said it would allocate $75 million to fund the First Step Act this year, adding a new risk and needs assessment system designed to assess inmates risks of recidivism and to identify their individualized needs to reduce their risks of re-offending. It calculates how many of the total federal sentences in fiscal year 2021 included criminal history points under USSG Manual Chapter Four for prior marijuana possession sentences. [1] Human Rights Watch and the American Civil Liberties Union, Every 25 Seconds: The Human Toll of Criminalizing Drug Use in the United States (New York: Human Rights Watch, 2016), https://www.hrw.org/report/2016/10/12/every-25-seconds/human-toll-criminalizing-drug-use-united-states 2016, p. 2. [15] United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Overdose Deaths Accelerating During COVID-19,: Expanded Prevention Efforts Needed, CDC press release, December 17, 2020, https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2020/p1218-overdose-deaths-covid-19.html (accessed March 9, 2021). [27] Drug Policy Alliance, 2020 Annual Report, February 17, 2021, https://drugpolicy.org/resource/drug-policy-alliance-annual-report (accessed March 9, 2021), p. 11. WebUSSC Guidelines. The Strategy focuses on two critical drivers of the epidemic: untreated addiction and drug trafficking. H.R.3713 has 21 cosponsors and has been jointly referred to the House Judiciary and House Energy and Commerce Committees. In this section, learn about the Commissions mission, structure, and ongoing work. Gov. The Federal Drug Testing Laws defined various federal employees who could receive drug testing at any time. Finally, it emphasizes the need to develop stronger data collection and analysis systems to better deploy public health interventions. The Commission serves as an information resource for Congress, the executive branch, the courts, criminal justice practitioners, the academic community, and the public. The legislation, which aims to end a longstanding 2d 714 (1989). Within the Judicial Branch, the USSC operates as an independent agency comprised of seven commissioners, each appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. Three of the commissioners, by law, must be federal judges. The Attorney General of the United States serves the USSC in an ex officio capacity (he cannot vote). The Mandatory Minimum Reform Act of 2020 would eliminate mandatory minimum sentences for drug offenses. The criminalization of drug possession for personal use is also inherently problematic because it represents a restriction on individual rights that is neither necessary nor proportionate to the goals it seeks to accomplish. In 2016, Human Rights Watch and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) issued a joint report entitled Every 25 Seconds: The Human Toll of Criminalizing Drug Use in the United States. Our research found that, at the time, every 25 seconds in the United States, someone is arrested for the simple act of possessing drugs for their personal use. Fine of not more than $5 million Serious changes occurred by the adoption of newly defined federal drug crimes and totally new The legislation also includes provisions to ban solitary confinement for juveniles, allows juveniles sentenced to life to seek a reduction in sentences after 20 years, and provides authority for expungement of juvenile records for most non-violent offenses. [20] There has been a national effort to take on parts of the problemaddressing police abuse, long sentences, and reclassification of certain drugs. Created by the Sentencing Reform Act found within the Comprehensive Crime Control Act of 1984, the Supreme Court of the United States approved its authority in Mistretta v. United States, 488 U.S. 361, 109 S. Ct. 647, 102 L. Ed. Webthese crimes, New Jersey would take a significant step towards addressing the lack of proportionality in the States sentencing laws and help undo a system of mass incarceration 8 2019 Commission Report, at 1-2. Se habla Espaol. [7] A criminal record locks these individuals out of jobs, housing, education, welfare assistance, voting and much more. Current guidelines require that judges impose on such a defendant a sentence under "Level 32" guidelines, requiring a 121 to 151 month incarceration. One reason for this gap is that people with addiction and those who care for them face too many barriers to treatment. Sentencing Commission provide judges recommended minimum and maximum terms for federal crimes. [6] Human Rights Watch, Every 25 Seconds, p. 2. However, drug producers continue to produce entirely new synthetic drugs, and drug traffickers continue to refine their methods and techniques for distributing them throughout our communities. [10] There are injustices and corresponding harms at every stage of the criminal process, harms that are all the more apparent when, as often happens, police, prosecutors, or judges respond to drug use as aggressively as the law allows. [38] In addition, they bear the stigma associated with the labels of drug offender the state has stamped on them, subjecting them to private discrimination in their daily interactions with landlords, employers, and peers. Human Rights Watch is a 501(C)(3)nonprofit registered in the US under EIN: 13-2875808. The MORE Act removes marijuana from the Controlled Substances Act and begins to repair the harm marijuana prohibition has caused to millions of people, particularly people of color, by establishing a fund for social equity programs to reinvest in affected communities. [61] Tom LoBianco, Report: Aide says Nixons war on drugs targeted blacks, hippies, CNN, March 24, 2016, https://www.cnn.com/2016/03/23/politics/john-ehrlichman-richard-nixon-drug-war-blacks-hippie/index.html (accessed March 9, 2021). This is due in significant degree to the proliferation of mandatory minimum sentences. The Strategy delivers on the call to action in President Bidens Unity Agenda through a whole-of-government approach to beat the overdose epidemic. The federal prison population has increased nearly 800% since 1980 and more than doubled since 1994, with spending up 1700% over that period, and federal prisons are currently operating at 131% of capacity. In this section, you can follow the Commissions work through the amendment cycle as priorities are set, research is performed, testimony is heard, and amendments are adopted. [19] The American criminal justice system holds almost 2.3 million people in 1,833 state prisons, 110 federal prisons, 1,772 juvenile correctional facilities, 3,134 local jails, 218 immigration detention facilities, and 80 Indian Country jails as well as in military prisons, civil commitment centers, state psychiatric hospitals, and prisons in U.S. territories. Prison Policy Initiative, Mass Incarceration: The Whole Pie 2020, March 24, 2020, https://www.prisonpolicy.org/reports/pie2020.html (accessed March 9, 2021), p. 1. [31] It is actually more than just the burden of drug arrests. Avoid delay in passing legislation making the sentencing reforms enacted in the First Step Act of 2018 retroactive. In Part Two, the USSC considers both federal and state law in prior sentences for simple marijuana possession and analyzes how they impact USSG criminal history calculations for new federal offenses. Spurred in part by the Senate, House Judiciary Chair Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) and Ranking Member John Conyers, Jr. (D-MI) reached agreement on a bipartisan House counterpart bill, H.R. Although the guidelines are not binding on judges, federal judges still impose guideline-range sentences almost 50% of the time. A complete list of final priorities may be found hereand in an upcoming edition of the Federal Register. Similarly, key tools like naloxone and syringe services programs are often restricted or underfunded at the community level, which limits access for people who use drugs. The criminal provisions of the (September 2022) This primer provides an overview of the statutes, sentencing guidelines, and case law applicable to federal drug offenses. The impact of a drug conviction can, and often does, impact multiple facets of an individuals life beyond the experience of incarceration. WebAnother recent publication worthy of study by federal criminal defense lawyers is the new January 2023 report of the United States Sentencing Commission (USSC), written by It directs federal agencies to expand scientific understanding of the recovery process by establishing a federal recovery research agenda; adopt flexible, responsive approaches that help people with SUD find and follow a pathway to recovery or remission that works for them; and eliminate barriers and increase economic opportunities for people in recovery. [66] The Justice Roundtable, Transformative Justice: Recommendations for the New Administration and 117th Congress, November 2020, https://justiceroundtable.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/Transformative- Justice.pdf (accessed March 9, 2021), p. 44. [49] For people who struggle with substance use disorder, criminalization often means cycling in and out of jail or prison, with little to no access to voluntary treatment. Help us continue to fight human rights abuses. Meanwhile, since 2014 there have been less and less federal AUSAs pursuing federal marijuana possession charges despite the literal language of the CSA. From the Report: Across all judicial districts, the overall number of marijuana possession sentencings followed the same pattern, declining from a high of 2,172 in fiscal year 2014 to a low of 145 in fiscal year 2021. For more on how the sentencing guidelines work in a particular case, read some of our earlier discussions of the USSG with examples of how the Sentencing Tables are used: The newly published USSC Report is the latest in a series of research reports compiled by the USSC. It builds upon an earlier report entitled Simple Possession Of Drugs in the Federal Criminal Justice System, published by the Commission on September 21, 2016. While USSC research reports are not the stuff of formal amendments to the USSG themselves, they are still very important. Communities of color and low-income people are disproportionately impacted by drug arrests and the unintended consequences of those arrests. [45] Ibid., p. 12; Susan Stellin, Is the War on Drugs Over? 9 Once an inmate reached the new date of parole eligibility, the inmate would proceed through the normal [16] Human Rights Watch, Every 25 Seconds, p. 3. For example, some states still have legal barriers that limit access to naloxone, and even in states where those barriers dont exist, naloxone does not always make it to those most at-risk of an overdose. This website is produced and published at U.S. taxpayer expense. [72] The Justice Roundtable, Transformative Justice, p. 45. Each year, the Commission reviews and refines these policies in light of congressional action, decisions from courts of appeals, sentencing-related research, and input from the criminal justice community. Defendant was convicted of one count of conspiracy to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine or 5 grams or more of actual, pure methamphetamine, two counts of distribution of heroin, and one count of distribution of heroin and methamphetamine. The SMART Cocaine Sentencing Act would reduce the current crack-to-powder cocaine sentencing disparity from 18:1 to 2.5:1. If convicted he faces between 5 and 40 years in prison, a fine of up to $5,000,000 and a supervised release term of at least 4 years and up to life. [29] The sheer magnitude of drug possession arrests means that they are a defining feature of the way certain communities experience and interact with police in the United States.[30]. The new sentencing commission chair, Carlton Reeves, said during a public hearing in October that setting new guidelines for compassionate release is a top priority. Strong sentencing reform is the key to addressing federal over-incarceration, like that proposed in the Senate Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act (S. 2123) and the House Sentencing Reform Act (H.R. In addition, the U.S. Department of Justice generally has treated marijuana possession offenses as a low enforcement priority in recent years. USSC Report p. 1. Elmira Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Drug Crime. Harsh sentencing guidelines. A defendant convicted of a federal drug crime could previously receive the following penalties under the Anti-Drug Abuse Act: A conviction of a drug offense involving the trafficking of 500 grams or more of powder cocaine carried a mandatory minimum sentence of at least five years in prison. Domestic Cannabis Suppression / Eradication Program, Red Ribbon Toolkit - Resources For Your Community, DEA National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, Intelligence Research Specialist Job Announcements, Schedule A Hiring Authority: Intelligence Research Specialist, Privacy Impact Assessment and Management Information Systems, Victim Witness Assistance Program Resources. [15], Governments and communities have a legitimate interest in preventing problematic substance use. A bipartisan group of senators led by Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) on October 1, 2015 introduced comprehensive legislation aimed at recalibrating prison sentences for certain drug offenders, narrowing mandatory minimum sentences to target violent criminals, and granting judges greater discretion at sentencing for lower-level drug crimes. This press release made available at FAMM provides this report on a new state bar report urging drug sentencing reforms in Massachusetts: Massachusetts must Your email address will not be published. Jan. 13, 2022 WASHINGTON Thousands of federal inmates will become eligible for release this week under a rule the Justice Department published on Thursday An error occurred while subscribing your email address. [9] Criminalizing simple drug possession has caused dramatic and unnecessary harms around the country, both for individuals and for communities that are subject to discriminatory enforcement. WebFor these inmates, the CDCR Secretary and county correctional administrator must refer the inmates information to the sentencing court by March 1, 2022. Congress should follow in Oregons footsteps by prioritizing an effort to end the criminalization of possession of drugs for personal use, and shift resources from the policing of drug use toward access to evidence-based treatment and other voluntary supports for people who struggle with substance use disorder. A defendant convicted of a class A-1 felony (possession of 8 or more ounces of substances containing a narcotic drug or 5,760 milligrams of methadone) may be sentenced to a term of 8 to 20 years imprisonment or a fine of $100,000. [52] Fortunately, there are alternatives to criminalization. FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Friday, October 2, 2020 BOSTON A Dighton registered nurse The First Step Act amended the statute providing for compassionate release to allow defendants for the first time to file for compassionate release, without having the Director of the Bureau of Prisons make a motion. Many states facing unsustainable prison growth have enacted sentencing reforms to expand alternatives to incarceration and shorten sentences for non-violent offenders, with good results. Although the amount cannot be quantified, the enormous resources spent to identify, arrest, prosecute, sentence, incarcerate, and supervise people whose only offense has been possession of drugs is hardly money well spent, and it has caused far more harm than good. (1) promulgate the guidelines, policy statements, or amendments provided for in this Act as soon as practicable, and in any event not later than 120 days after the MR. MARIO PUENTES SENTENCING MEMORANDUM . Please try again. Department of Justice U.S. Attorneys Office District of Massachusetts. These limitations amount to individuals taking on the moniker of second class citizens., Laws criminalizing the possession of drugs for personal use are inconsistent with respect for human autonomy, which is at the heart of the right to privacy, and contravene the human rights principle of proportionality in punishment. Sentencing Commissions Voluntary Sentencing Guidelines, which often call for extremely harsh periods of incarceration. It also subjects them to discrimination and stigma. Shown Here: Introduced in Senate (03/25/2021) Smarter Sentencing Act of 2021. Over-reliance on prison is fiscally unsustainable and has imposed a burdensome human toll and a disparate impact on African-American and Latino persons and communities. Lock The Strategy prioritizes a targeted response to drug traffickers and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs) by hitting them where it hurts the most: their wallets. [32] A fresh and evidence-based rethinking of the drug war paradigm that includes moving away from criminalization of simple drug possession is needed. This bill reduces statutory mandatory minimum penalties for certain drug offenses, requires reporting on the impact of cost savings from the reductions, and establishes a public database of federal criminal offenses. [49] Human Rights Watch, Every 25 Seconds, p. 3. For criminal defense lawyers who represent clients facing federal drug crime charges, the new USSC Report is a necessary read. The USSC Report focuses upon sentencing in cases for the offense of simple possession of marijuana. Essentially, it does two things: Here are its Key Findings as summarized by the USSC in its Summary: Federal Sentencings for Simple Possession of Marijuana, Impact of Prior Sentences for Simple Possession of Marijuana. Being charged with a federal drug crime could mean a serious punishment if the accused is found guilty. On February 11, 2016, the House Judiciary Committee by voice vote approved H.R. document.getElementById( "ak_js_2" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Your email address will not be published. First Offense: Not more that 20 yrs. [2] Then and now, police in the United States make far more arrests for simple drug possession than for any other crime. S. 2123, the Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act of 2015 (SRCA), is also sponsored by Senators John Cornyn (R-TX), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Mike Lee (R-UT), Charles Schumer (D-NY), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Tim Scott (R-SC). See: The New 2016 Marijuana Laws: What It Means For Texas. The Commission serves as an information resource for Congress, the executive branch, the courts, criminal justice practitioners, the academic community, and the public. It goes into details like demographics; past criminal histories; and how these sentences compare to those involving other types of drug charges. As an example, earlier this month we discussed how influential a single memorandum sent by the Attorney General of the United States to all federal prosecutors will be in future criminal defense cases involving federal felony charges. Read, Policy Changes in Charges, Pleas, and Sentencing for Federal Drug Crime Prosecutions: New AG Garland DOJ Directive. Arrest Statistics Say No, New York Times, November 5, 2019, https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/05/upshot/is-the-war-on-drugs-over-arrest-statistics-say-no.html(accessed March 9, 2021). The Justice Safety Valve Act of 2019 which would allow courts to impose a sentence below a mandatory minimum if the court finds that it is necessary to do so in order to impose a sentence that is not greater than necessary to comply with the statutory purpose of sentencing laid out in 18 U.S.C. [37] People convicted of simple drug possession may no longer qualify for educational loans; they may be forced to rely on public transport because their drivers license is automatically suspended; they may be banned from juries and they may face deportation if they are not US citizens, no matter how long they have lived in the US or how many family members live in the country. If death or serious injury, not less than 20 or more than life. These provisions would allow qualifying inmates to earn reduced sentences through participation in recidivism reduction prison programs including work, job training, drug treatment and faith-based activities. 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