Importantly, the bill makes its changes retroactive, enabling people who now have mandatory minimum sentenceschanged by the bill to ask their judges for a sentence reduction. "The Smarter Sentencing Act is a commonsense solution that will greatly reduce the financial, and more importantly the human, cost imposed on society by the broken status quo. Sen. Cotton, a hardline prohibitionist described by Beforeitsnews.com as someone who has never met a drug penalty he thought was too severe, objected. In some cases, the new minimums would apply retroactively, giving some people currently in prison on drug offenses a new sentence. 3382) in the U.S. House of Representatives, and it gained cosponsors from both parties. The year 2021 was widely seen as the end of a dark era and the beginning of a brighter one. Lee and Durbin first introduced theSmarter Sentencing Actin 2013. In October 2015 Bob Goodlatte (R-VA)revised it and used the name, H.R. It would extend retroactivity to anyone sentenced for drug or stacked 924(c) offenses sentenced prior to the 2018 First Step Act and let judges waive criminal history limitations that keep defendants from getting the 18 USC 3553 safety value. GovTrack.us is not a government website. In fact, prosecutors bring mandatory minimums65 percent more oftenagainst Black defendants, all else remaining equal. Smarter Sentencing Act of 2021 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. If anything here applies to you, contact us today. Mandatory minimum penalties have played a large role in the explosion of the U.S. prison population, often leading to sentences that are unfair, fiscally irresponsible, and a threat to public safety, Durbin said. Grassley was enraged, blasting the Garland memo as demanding that prosecutors ignore the text and spirit of federal statutes [and] undermining legislative efforts to address this sentencing disparity. And just like that, when the text of the 4,000-page, $1.7 trillion spending bill was released, the watered-down EQUAL Act was nowhere to be found. The Act was passed by a vote of 13 to 5. The act also proposes to trade the language of "Felony Drug Offense" in 841 with "serious drug felony" or "serious violent felony," the new language from the FIRST STEP Act of 2018. Apr 25, 2023. District of Massachusetts | Rhode Island Man Pleads Guilty to Along with Durbin and Lee, the bill is cosponsored by Senators Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Roger Wicker (R-MS), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Angus King (I-ME), and Tim Kaine (D-VA). WASHINGTON - Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) cosponsored the "Smarter Sentencing Act," bipartisan legislation designed to bring judicial discretion and flexibility to non-violent drug charge sentencing. First, a letter sent last week by 25 state attorneys general to House and Senate leadership, urging an expansion of Section 404 of the First Step Act to include people sentenced under 21 USC 841(b)(1)(C). |date=March 25, 2021 Committee on the Judiciary, Durbin, Lee Introduce Smarter Sentencing Act (March 26, 2021), Congressional Record, Statements On Introduced Bills And Joint Resolutions (S.1013 and S.1014) (March 25, 2021), Sentencing Law and Policy, Senators Durbin and Grassley re-introduce Smarter Sentencing Act to reduce federal drug mandatory minimums (March 26, 2021). Sen. Bookers hail Mary fell short. It still has a long way to go before it will become law, but it is off to a good start. And there is reason to think it might succeed: it has support from the full range of the political spectrum, from Tea Party favorite Sen. Rand Paul to Democratic stalwart Sen. Carl Levin. The United States Senate has Bought forth the Smarter Sentencing Act of 2021, which will do much for mandatory minimums and "Couriers" if passed. It would be an excellent starting point to developing a less destructive drug-sentencing scheme. Legislation not passed by the end of a Congress is cleared from the books. Would you like to join our advisory group to work with us on the future of GovTrack? The United States Sentencing Commission scheduled a vote of for April 10, 2014, to consider a reduction in the base level offense of certain drug convictions. To make matters worse, Garland chosenotto reinstate a 2013 Holder policy that both directed prosecutors to decline to charge a mandatory minimum in low-level, non-violent drug offenses and explicitly acknowledged that such sentences do not promote public safety, deterrence, and rehabilitation. After twenty years defending people charged with federal crimes, Ive learned that prosecutors are rarely agents of change. She previously served as an attorney with the Federal Defender Program in Chicago. The fact that a large number of House Republicans joined Democrats in passing the EQUAL Act last year is not reassuring: the trick will be getting a Republican speaker who controls what comes up for a vote put the bill in front of the chamber. At the same time, Durbin and Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) introduced S.1014, the First Step Implementation Act of 2021. As a result, drug sentences which are driven by the amount of drug involved in the crime soared. But some marijuana and cocaine reform even though it was not quite what was in the MORE Act and EQUAL Act that passed the House looked likely as late as last week. In 2013, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) established a six-month, bipartisan Over-Criminalization Task Force to address the scope and size of the federal criminal code and regulations. We love educating Americans about how their government works too! If the new law is passed, someone who was sentenced for a crack cocaine offense before the FSA was enacted could file a motion and seek a shorter sentence under the FSA sentencing scheme. In the words of the members of the bipartisan U.S. Home Blog News and Politics United States Senators Bring Forth Smarter Sentencing Act of 2021, On March 25, 2021, Senators Durbin and several others introduced the Smarter Sentencing Act of 2021. Moreover, the current chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee is Senator Durbin and the current President campaigned on a platform that included an express promise to work for the passage of legislation to repeal mandatory minimums at the federal level. I will keep fighting to get this commonsense, bipartisan legislation through the Senate with my colleague, Senator Lee.. The House of Representatives version, known as HR920, was re-introduced by Idaho Republican Raul Labrador in February 2015. Durbin and Grassley both think a Second Step Act is needed to implement sentencing changes in the First Step law by making them retroactive, midterms are coming up in a little more than 6 months and campaign-season politics surrounding criminal justice reform threaten broader GOP support. The Task Force expired in November 2013, but advocates supported a re-authorization for another six-month term and asked the chairman to hold a hearing on sentencing laws. The Smarter Sentencing Act: Achieving Fairness Through Financially Responsible Federal Sentencing Policies, 48 J. Marshall L. Rev. 841(b)(1)) S. 1013 (IS) - Smarter Sentencing Act of 2021 - Content Details 1013 117th Congress: Smarter Sentencing Act of 2021. www.GovTrack.us. The five-year mandatory minimum (for 100 grams or more of heroin or 500 grams or more of cocaine) would drop to two years. 2 0 obj At the federal level alone, mandatory minimum penalties form the cornerstone of the human caging system. The, Additionally, the bill corrects a weird anomaly in the, As for the two new bills, introduction hardly means approval. All of that would be great, but as Supreme Court Justice Sotomayor noted last week currently, six of the seven voting members seats are vacant. The votes of at least four members are required for the Commission to promulgate amendments to the Guidelines. The Commission has been paralyzed by lack of quorum since December 2018. (April 14, 2022), CNN, Ambitious trial judges could be wary after GOP attacks on Judge Jacksons sentencing record (April 11, 2022), Wichita Eagle, Former U.S. attorney tells how criminal justice could be more just (April 12, 2022). See Terms of Service, Then, Sen Charles Grassley (R-IA), the ranking Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee and introduced his, Sen. Booker then sought unanimous consent to release the stand-alone version of the, Grassley was enraged, blasting the Garland memo as demanding that prosecutors ignore the text and spirit of federal statutes [and] undermining legislative efforts to address this sentencing disparity. And just like that, when the text of the 4,000-page, $1.7 trillion spending bill was released, the watered-down, FAMM vice president Molly Gill wants to see the, The fact that a large number of House Republicans joined Democrats in passing the, Congress was recessed all last week and for part of this one, so no legislative progress was made on the, But both senior senators acknowledge its not a glide path forward,, Meanwhile, Durbin said hes concerned about a, Senate aides on both sides of the aisle warn that, Since Bidens inauguration, criminal justice reform has taken a back seat to his more prominent initiatives, last Marchs, A couple of bills before Congress would reduce but not eliminate mandatory minimums: the, In the House, Republican Rep. Nancy Mace (South Carolina) introduced the. If youve visited a bill page on GovTrack.us recently, you may have noticed a new study guide tab located just below the bill title. While Ohio State law professor Doug Berman is skeptical of their chances, he notes that prior iterations of [the Smarter Sentencing Act] got votes in Senate Judiciary Committee from the likes of Ted Cruz and Rand Paul. Richard Durbin U.S. Senate 711 Hart Senate Building Washington, D.C. 20510 The Hon. Hes blowing his opportunity (September 8, 2021), Deseret News, Conservatives should support sentencing reform for crack cocaine (September 8, 2021). The Schumer bill has been released as a working draft but has yet to be formally introduced. Esta pgina no est disponible en espaol. I think that the time is right for its passage given the makeup of congress and the need for reform. endobj Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience and may not be complete or accurate. To dismantle Americas dehumanizing and racially skewedhuman cagingsystem, we must eliminate mandatory minimums. S. 1013 117th Congress: Smarter Sentencing Act of 2021. Your poor, dumb peasant from El Cocador humping marijuana across the border or clueless young woman flying in to JFK from East Slobovia with heroin in the liner of her suitcase These are the couriers, the lowest of the low-level defendant being paid maybe two shekels for hauling someone elses big score. There is no Easter Bunny. He wrote, As a former influential senator and Judiciary Committee chairman, President Joe Biden is at least partially responsible for the explosive growth of our federal prison population. The First Step Act was a critical move in the right direction, but there is much more work to be done to reform our criminal justice system. Under 21 USC 960, the drug importation criminal statute, they get hammered with the same mandatory sentences as Mr. Big, the kingpin staying safely offshore. WASHINGTON FAMM President Kevin Ring released the following statement in support of the U.S. Senate introduction of the Smarter Sentencing Act of 2021, which would reduce mandatory minimum sentences for low-level drug offenses. It would do so in three ways: First, it would expand eligibility for the drug safety valve so that people with some criminal history up to Guidelines Category II would still be eligible. Because you are a member of panel, your positions on legislation and notes below will be shared with the panel administrators. It is related to the Justice Safety Valve Act of 2013, the Federal Prison Reform Act of 2013 (S. 1783) and others, in an effort to deal with the over-crowded, and under-funded, federal prison system. And there is no 65% Bill. (2023). Attempts to stitch up the tattered old paradigm are futile and will not eradicate the spreading stain of racial inequity. It would not affect mandatory minimums in21 USC 841(b). When the SAFE Banking Act, a marijuana bill, passed the House last year, it got 106 Republican votes, demonstrating that the GOP can deliver votes on cannabis legislation. Sentencing Reform: Smarter Sentencing Act @SentencingR SUPPORT PAGE FOR SENTENCING REFORM *TITLE S.1013-117th CONGRESS (2021-2022): SMARTER SENTENCING ACT 2021* Pennsylvania, USA Joined June 2021 0 Photos and videos Photos and videos Tweets TweetsTweets, current page. This activity took place on a related bill, S. 1410 (113th). As for the two new bills, introduction hardly means approval. It detailed the costs associated with inmates serving life sentences and detailed the consideration for public safety should modifying the guidelines and reducing the sentences occur. Copyright 2016-Present The Law Office of Jeremy Gordon. Introduced, on this bill on a six-point scale from strongly oppose to strongly support. His legislative record is riddled with bills he supported, and sometimes wrote, that filled BOP cells and encouraged states to do the same. At The Law Office of Jeremy Gordon, we fight aggressively for our clients. 3617) exactly none made it past the Senate during the two-year Congress that ends in a week. We anticipate that the provisions of the two bills will be blended into a single package by the Senate Judiciary Committee. But then, Attorney General Merrick Garland picked the middle of the negotiations to issue a memo directing federal prosecutors to promote the equivalent treatment of crack and powder cocaine offenses in two ways. Were looking for feedback from educators about how GovTrack can be used and improved for your classroom. The MOREAct would have allowed cannabis companies to open bank accounts and would have retroactively permitted changes in pot-based sentences. Delays can occur when there are a large number of bills to prepare or when a very large bill has to be printed. In short, federal incarceration has become one of our nations biggest expenditures, dwarfing the amount spent on law enforcement. Given that commitment, Prez Biden should be a vocal supporter of this bill or should oppose it only because it does not go far enough because it merely seeks to reduce mandatory minimum penalties for certain nonviolent drug offenses, rather than entirely eliminate them. Introduced in Senate (03/25/2021) Smarter Sentencing Act of 2021 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. The bipartisan bill introduction was led by Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah). The Smarter Sentencing Act of 2021 indicates that a courier that is found guilty under 960(b)(1)(H) would be subject to a mandatory minimum of 5 years and not more than life (a non-courier would be looking at 10-L) and a courier that is found guilty under 960(b)(2)(H) would be subject to a mandatory minimum of 2 years to life (a non-courier would be looking at 5-L under this section). The Smarter Sentencing Act proposes similar adjustments: (b)(1)(A): The 15-year mandatory minimumfor a prior drug offense would drop to 10 years, and the 10-year mandatory minimumfloor would drop to 5 years. Reuters reported a week ago that Senate negotiators had reached a potential compromise. This change was incorporated into the First Step Act. |quote=Smarter Sentencing Act of 2021 The Smarter Sentencing Act, which passed the Senate Judiciary Committee, would take some of the sting out of federal drug sentencing. Examples abound for successful alternative methods that can greatly improve the current criminal legal system. (9 Democrats, 2 Independents, 2 Republicans). It also provides a retroactivity provision for the court to impose a reduced sentence for those sentenced before this act gets signed after considering the 3553(a) factors. If it did exist, it wouldnt get one now. So the climate for criminal justice reform is getting ugly. The, Additionally, the bill corrects a weird anomaly in the, As for the two new bills, introduction hardly means approval. It would not affect mandatory minimums in21 USC 841(b). Other problems flow from this perversion of the power balance. It was clear last summer that the First Step Implementation Act, the Smarter Sentencing Act, the COVID-19 Safer Detention Act (and the Prohibiting Punishment of Acquitted Conduct Act were going nowhere. |accessdate=May 1, 2023 This produces theCooperation Paradox: Big fish who are more culpable and have information about other criminal activity can avoid a mandatory minimum by collaborating in the prosecution of others. endobj [3] The House and Senate Committees on the Judiciary was the next step in the bill being passed into law. (1) the mandate of the United States Sentencing Commission, under section 994 (g) of title 28, United States Code, to formulate the sentencing guidelines in such a way as to "minimize the likelihood that the Federal prison population will exceed the capacity of the Federal prisons"; 3 0 obj The clocks running out. The bill's Bi-Partisan support from both the Republican and Democratic parties helped increase its likelihood of moving through committee hearings. No one knows. Any bill now pending in the House or Senate that has not passed will disappear on Jan 3, when the new 2-year Congress the 118th convenes. If the Democrats fail to take advantage of the political opportunity in front of them, Forbes said last week, they risk ceding this issue to the Republicans if and when they take back control of Congress, possibly as soon as next year. Several of its provisions made it into theFirst Step Act, which was enacted into law in 2018, but the changes in mandatory minimums for most drug offenses would not. If you can, please take a few minutes to help us improve GovTrack for users like you. The FSA is the law that reduces the sentencing disparity between crack cocaine and powder cocaine. Alexander was charged and arrested in November 2021. from 10 years to 5 years for a low-level offense after one prior felony drug offense. And we will start all over again, but with a much unfriendlier House of Representatives. The chair of the Commission issued a statement on the same day saying that "This modest reduction in drug penalties is an important step toward reducing the problem of prison overcrowding at the federal level in a proportionate and fair manner," said Judge Patti B. Saris, chair of the commission. Importantly, the bill makes its changes retroactive, enabling people who now have mandatory minimum sentenceschanged by the bill to ask their judges for a sentence reduction. from life to 25 years for a high-level offense after two or more prior felony drug offenses, from 5 years to 2 years for a first-time low-level offense (e.g., 100 to 999 grams of heroin), and. rburks@famm.org. Ordered Reported, Reintroduced Bill This bill would eliminate the crack/powder disparity that results in longer mandatory minimum sentences for Black Americans; but it would not end mandatory minimums. (b)(1)(B): The 10-year mandatory minimumfor a prior drug offense would drop to 5 years, and the 5-year mandatory minimumfloor would drop to 2 years. The safety valve is critical to many defendants because a) it lowers their offense level by two points and b) it can drop an offender below a mandatory minimum sentence. The SSAwould turn the mandatory life sentence into a mandatory minimum of 25 years. However, despite Garlands testimony, his Department of Justice has given no sign that it will stop pursuing mandatory minimums. The Smarter Sentencing Act is a commonsense solution that will greatly reduce the financial and, more importantly, the human cost imposed on society by the broken status quo. Meanwhile, Durbin said hes concerned about a Second Step Acts prospects for passage, particularly given Republican accusations during Jacksons confirmation hearings that the justice-in-waiting was soft on crime. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. I pray something is passed. The SSA will give judges the flexibility and discretion they need to impose stiff sentences on the most serious drug lords and cartel bosses, while enabling nonviolent . And his Dept, of Justice finally reinterpreted the CARES Act to let people on home confinement stay there. }}. First Step adjusted mandatory life in 841(b)(1)(A) to 25 years, and mandatory 20 years in the same subsection to 15 years. Forget swinging the pendulum from tough-on-crime to leniency; it always swings back. Federal Criminal Cooperation (Rule 3553 and the Safety Valve), Federal Halfway Houses and Home Confinement, Statements on Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions. Durbin, Lee Introduce Smarter Sentencing Act | United States Senate Mandatory minimum penalties have played a large role in the explosion of the U.S. prison population, often leading to sentences that are unfair, fiscally irresponsible, and a threat to public safety, Sen. Durbin said in a press release. Both parties and both chambers of Congress agreed to revisions to federal sentencing guidelines and the mandatory minimums. The Smarter Sentencing Act ( S. 1013) is a bill in the United States Senate that would reduce mandatory minimum sentences for some federal drug offenses. The Smarter Sentencing Act, an updated version of the Smarter Sentencing Act of 2019 (which went nowhere), continues the mandatory minimum adjustments to 21 USC 841 (b), the sentencing section of the drug trafficking statute begun by the First Step Act. The Smarter Sentencing Act also adds a courier exception to the importation statute of 21 usc 960, the importation statute. The Senate bill, now named S.2123: Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act of 2015, was revised by Charles Grassley R-IA. The First Step Act incorporated the life-to-25 year and the 20-to-15 year reductions, but not the remainders. You recall that in Terry v. United States last June, the Supreme Court held that Section 404 did not qualify pre-2010 crack sentences for sentence reduction. United States Senators Bring Forth Smarter Sentencing Act of 2021. We are experienced, and know what it takes to present a successful defense in a federal criminal case. Instead, we need a paradigm shift. It was clear last summer that the First Step Implementation Act, the Smarter Sentencing Act, the COVID-19 Safer Detention Act (and the Prohibiting Punishment of Acquitted Conduct Act were going nowhere. In a political environment where the parties compete for who can be more pro-criminal, the Democrats will always win. Additionally, last years SSA made existing mandatory minimums inapplicable to a defendant who functions a courier; andestablishes new, shorter mandatory minimum prison terms for a courier. Highlights of the measure include. [4] Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act of 2015. Under the SSA, a 10-year mandatory minimum sentence would become 5 years, 20 years would become 10 years, five years would become two years. But efforts were severely hobbled last fall when Senate Majority Charles Schumer (D-NY), Sen Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Sen Ron Wyden (D-OR) introduced their own version of weed reform, the Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act (S.4591). Legal Information Services Associates LLC, Showing Some Compassion: 18 USC 3582(c)(1)(A)(i), Supreme Court Justice Sotomayor noted last week, Biden Commutes Sentences of 31 People Who Are Already At Home Update for May 1, 2023, Code Blue At BOP, GAO Says Update for April 28, 2023, Phoning It In On Review of Magistrates Decision Not Good Enough Update for April 27, 2023, Nothing Really IS Sacred Update for April 25, 2023, Three First Step Reform Retread Bills Introduced Update for April 24, 2023, FBI Legal Handbook for Special Agents 2003, FBI Domestic Investigations and Operations Guide 2008, FBI Manual of Investigative Operations & Guidelines 1998, FBI Manual of Administrative Operations & Procedures 1998, Federal Public Defender lawyers resources. A couple of bills before Congress would reduce but not eliminate mandatory minimums: the EQUAL Act (lowers minimums for crack to equal those of powder) has passed the House but hasnt yet cleared committee in the Senate; the MORE Act (decriminalizes marijuana retroactively) has been approved by a House committee but has not been passed by the House or Senate; the First Step Implementation Act (makes First Step mandatory minimum reductions retroactive) and the Smarter Sentencing Act (reduces mandatory minimum penalties for certain nonviolent drug offenses only) have not even cleared committee in either the House or Senate. Apr 26, 2023, But presidents still wouldnt be able to move their legal cases to the shows The Peoples Court or Divorce Court. Still, it appeared up until a week ago that some crack cocaine relief would be jammed into the giant end-of-year spending bill. Since Bidens inauguration, criminal justice reform has taken a back seat to his more prominent initiatives, last Marchs American Rescue Plan, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act in November, and the now seemingly-dead Build Back Better social-spending blowout. I certainly hope that it passes this year. Lee and Durbin first introduced the Smarter Sentencing Act in 2013. 1100 H Street NW, Suite 1000 Half measures wont be effective; empirical work suggests that theObama administrations efforts to temper mandatory minimumsin drug cases did little to reduce sentences or racial disparities. The Smarter Sentencing Act, an updated version of the Smarter Sentencing Act of 2019 (which went nowhere), continues the mandatory minimum adjustments to 21 USC 841(b), the sentencing section of the drug trafficking statute begun by the First Step Act. 3617), or for that matter anything else. Senate aides on both sides of the aisle warn that EQUAL could still face a challenging path to final passage, including a potentially arduous debate over amendments. Meanwhile, S.1014 the First Step Implementation Act is equally significant. 1013 (117th) About 50% of those federal inmates are serving sentences for drug-related offenses, increasing the taxpayer burden by more than 2,000%. Biden did issue an executive order canceling contracts with private prison operators, a nice change for the 14,000 people in those joints. Second, prosecutors power over mandatory minimums in turn creates racial disparities, obliterating any pretense of an unbiased system. The November 2015 edits additional safe guards from releasing repeat, violent offenders and applied retroactivity to sentences.
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