Supreme Court Allows Flexible Drug Sentencing
News Headlines: Dec. 11, 2007
Talk About It:
Washington Post: Sense in Sentencing — "For roughly two decades, federal trial judges have chafed under the constraints of federal sentencing guidelines and mandatory minimums that often forced them to hand down inordinately long sentences. Those injustices have been most pronounced in drug cases, particularly those involving crack cocaine."
UPDATE: AP: The U.S. Sentencing Commission has voted to make its recent easing of crack cocaine punishment guidelines retroactive.
[Listen to today's show for in-depth analysis of the Court's ruling.]
Nation:
New York Times: Harvard to Aid Students High in Middle Class
Reuters: Bible Belt State May Be Crucial In Election
The Plain Dealer: More Blacks Appear to Be Adopting White Children
Reuters: Civic Groups Slam U.S. for "Abysmal" Race Record
Chicago Tribune: Black Students at NIU Feel Unsafe After Threats
Newsweek: The GOP's Latino Problem
People:
UPI: Man Accused of Racism Has Black Genes
New York Post: Anucha Slam-Dunks Garden for $11.5M in Sex Suit
Chicago Sun-Times: Prosecutor: Nailah Stalked Before She Died
World:
New York Times: At Least 67 Dead in Algiers Bombings
Op-Ed:
Carl Jeffers: The Reverse Race Card and the Oprah Factor
Eugene Robinson: Oprah the Believer
Comments
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As a substance abuse treatment provider I believe the war on drugs has effectively been a war on people. It is a positivie step to enable the judicial system to address individuals according to the circumstances of their alleged crime, instead of mandating sentences to a group of people who are as varied as our popluation. Mandatory sentencing simply marginalizes people when there are so many opportunities to assist people with substance related issues to develop aletrnative solutions and healthier lifestyles for themselves and their social network.
so let me get this right...
most of black america is rejoicing that black criminal "dope" gangs will get less prison time -- when they are caught & convicted of posioning majority black communities: 24/7/365?
No dirtyblues . . . you got it wrong. Whether someone is a hardened criminal or small fry who can be reformed, the person should be tried on an individual basis. Easing of the guidelines does NOT guarantee that everyone who is convicted suddenly has a get out of jail quicker card. It just means that a person can ask for his or her case to be reviewed.
I wonder how people would have reacted if the Sentencing Commission had decided to make the punishment for cocaine as severe as the punishment for crack. Something tells me that people arrested with 5 "sweet & lo packets" of cocaine would be portrayed as just misguided and only harming themselves--not hardened criminals.
People who are found guilty of selling drugs should go to jail. They should be judged individually, fairly , no matter what their skin color.
