DATE: July 23, 2015

TO: Concerned Parties

FROM: Hilary O. Shelton, Director, NAACP Washington Bureau

Sensenbrenner-­‐Scott  Over-­‐Criminalization  Task  Force  Safe,  Accountable,  Fair,  Effective,  Justice  Reinvestment  Act  Of  2015  Tackles  The  Issues  Of  

Over-­‐Incarceration,  Growing  Prison  Population  And  Costs  H.R. 2944 APPLIES LESSONS LEARNED BY THE STATES TO THE

FEDERAL CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM

 THE  ISSUE:    Since  1980,  Congress  has  steadily  increased  the  size  and  scope  of  the  federal  criminal  code  and  with  it  significantly  increased  the  federal  prison  population.      In  the  past  35  years,  the  federal  government  has  added  an  estimated  2,000  new  crimes  to  the  books,  while  the  federal  imprisonment  rate  has  grown  by  an  astounding  518%.  During  the  same  period,  annual  spending  on  the  federal  prison  system  rose  595%,  from  $970  million  to  more  than  $6.7  billion,  after  adjusting  for  inflation.    The  trend  toward  over-­‐incarceration  has  been  especially  hard  on  racial  and  ethnic  minorities.    More  than  60%  of  the  people  in  prison  are  now  racial  and  ethnic  minorities.  For  African  American  males  in  their  thirties,  1  in  every  10  is  in  prison  or  jail  on  any  given  day.  Due  to  the  "war  on  drugs,"  two-­‐thirds  of  all  persons  in  prison  for  drug  offenses  are  people  of  color.    Like  the  federal  government,  states  also  recorded  sharp  increases  in  imprisonment  and  associated  costs  over  the  past  30  years.  During  the  past  decade,  however,  the  states  have  responded  by  reducing  their  imprisonment  rate  by  4%  while  the  federal  imprisonment  rate  jumped  15%.  The  state  drop  was  driven  in  large  part  by  comprehensive  reform  efforts  in  more  than  25  states  designed  to  protect  public  safety  while  containing  costs  and  preventing  further  growth  in  government  programs.      These  state  reforms  have  returned  dividends  to  taxpayers  many  times  over:  from  Texas  and  Wisconsin  to  Rhode  Island,  from  Georgia  and  South  Carolina  to  New  York,  32  states  have  reduced  both  their  crime  and  imprisonment  rates  over  the  past  five  years.  Cumulative  cost  savings  in  a  subset  of  these  states  exceed  $4.6  billion,  and  millions  have  been  reinvested  in  prison  alternatives  better  at  breaking  the  cycle  of  recidivism.    To  address  the  problems  associated  with  the  trend  toward  federal  over-­‐criminalization,  in  the  spring  of  2013,  Congressmen  Jim  Sensenbrenner  (WI)  and  Robert  “Bobby”  Scott  (VA)  led  a  bipartisan  task  force  aimed  at  reducing  the  federal  criminal  code  and  analyzing  our  country's  apparent  addiction  to  and  over-­‐reliance  on  criminalization  and  incarceration.    The  result  is  H.R.    2944,  the  Sensenbrenner-­‐Scott  Over-­‐Criminalization  Task  Force  Safe,  Accountable,  Fair,  Effective  (SAFE)  Justice  Reinvestment  Act  of  2015.    This  seminal,  bipartisan  legislation  draws  on  what  has  worked  at  the  state  level,  and  applies  it  to  the  federal  criminal  justice  system.    Specifically,  it  curtails  over-­‐criminalization  by  eliminating  federal  criminal  penalties  for  simple  drug  possession  in  state  jurisdictions;  requiring  public  disclosure  of  regulatory  criminal  offenses;  allowing  victims  of  regulatory  over-­‐criminalization  to  contact  the  inspector  general;  restoring  discretion  to  judges  to  determine  to  what  extent  manipulated  conduct  that  results  from  fictitious  law  enforcement  “stings”  may  be  considered  in  court;  protecting  against  wrongful  convictions;  and  creating  procedures  to  simplify  charging  and  safely  reduce  pre-­‐trial  detention.    Furthermore,  H.R.  2944  would  increase  the  use  of  evidence-­‐based  sentencing  alternatives  by  expanding  eligibility  for  pre-­‐judgment  probation;  promoting  greater  use  of  probation  for  lower-­‐level  offenders;  and  encouraging  judicial  districts  to  open  drug,  veteran,  mental  health  and  other  problem  solving  courts.  Finally,  H.R.  2944  also  takes  affirmative  steps  to  concentrate  prison  space  on  violent  and  career  criminals;  increases  government  transparency  and  accountability;  reduces  recidivism  by  using  swift  and  certain  responses  so  offenders  know  what  will  happen  if  they  re-­‐offend  or  act  in  a  certain  way,  and  by  creating  a  system  of  rewards  and  incentives  for  good  behavior;  sentences  strategically  for  drug  offenders  and  focuses  on  high  risk  offenders;  and  acknowledges  that  age  matters  by  implementing  smart,  targeted  geriatric  release  programs  which  can  ensure  heinous  offenders  remain  behind  bars  while  cutting  down  on  costs  and  maintaining  public  safety.        

More…

WASHINGTON BUREAU · NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF COLORED PEOPLE 1156 15TH STREET, NW SUITE 915 · WASHINGTON, DC 20005 · P (202) 463-2940 · F (202) 463-2953

E-MAIL: WASHINGTONBUREAU@NAACPNET.ORG · WEB ADDRESS WWW.NAACP.ORG

ACTION

ALERT

THE ACTION WE NEED YOU TO TAKE: Contact your Representative and both your Senators and URGE THEM TO SUPPORT H.R. 2944, THE SENSENBRENNER-SCOTT OVER-CRIMINALIZATION TASK FORCE SAFE, ACCOUNTABLE, FAIR, EFFECTIVE (SAFE) JUSTICE REINVESTMENT ACT OF 2015. To contact your Senators and Representative, you may:

! Make a Phone Call: Call your Senators and your Representative in Washington by dialing the Capitol Switchboard and asking to be transferred to your Senators'/Congressman’s offices. The switchboard phone number is (202) 224-3121 (see message section, below).

! Write a Letter To write letters to your Senators, send them to:

The Honorable (name of Senator) U.S. Senate Washington, D.C. 20510

To write a letter to your Representative, send it to: The Honorable (name of Representative) U.S. House of Representatives Washington, D.C. 20515

! Send a Fax If you would like to send a fax, call your Senators’ or Representative’s offices (through the Capitol switchboard) and ask for their fax numbers (you can use either the attached sample letter or the message box, below).

! Send an E-Mail To send an e-mail to your Senators, go to www.senate.gov; click on “Find Your Senators”. Look up your Senators by state; go to their web sites for e-mail addresses. To send an e-mail to your Representative, go to www.house.gov, and click on “Write Your Representative” (on the left hand side, just under “find your Representative). This will help you identify who your congressman is and how to contact him/her.

REMEMBER TO CONTACT BOTH YOUR SENATORS!!!!!

THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION TO THIS IMPORTANT MATTER!!! If you have any questions, call Hilary Shelton at the Washington Bureau at (202) 463-2940.

A SAMPLE LETTER IS ATTACHED

THE  MESSAGE  • Due  to  our  nation’s  apparent  addiction  to  and  over-­‐reliance  on  criminalization  and  

incarceration,  in  past  35  years,  the  federal  government  has  added  an  estimated  2,000  new  crimes  to  the  books,  while  the  federal  imprisonment  rate  has  grown  by  an  astounding  518%.  During  the  same  period,  annual  spending  on  the  federal  prison  system  rose  595%,  from  $970  million  to  more  than  $6.7  billion,  after  adjusting  for  inflation.        

• The  trend  toward  over-­‐incarceration  has  been  especially  hard  on  racial  and  ethnic  minorities;  more  than  60%  of  the  people  in  prison  are  now  racial  and  ethnic  minorities.    

• We  need  to  take  affirmative  steps  to  curb  the  trend  towards  over-­‐incarceration  in  order  to  help  save  people,  neighborhoods,  communities,  and  our  nation.  

MEMBERSHIP IS POWER! JOIN THE NAACP TODAY. To become an NAACP member or to sign up for e-mail legislative and press updates, visit www.naacp.org

(date) The Honorable ___________________________ United States Senate / House of Representatives Washington, D.C. 20510 / 20515

RE: STRONG SUPPORT FOR H.R. 2944, THE SENSENBRENNER-SCOTT OVER-CRIMINALIZATION TASK FORCE SAFE, ACCOUNTABLE, FAIR, EFFECTIVE (SAFE) JUSTICE REINVESTMENT ACT OF 2015. Dear Senator / Representative _______________________________; As your constituent, I strongly support H.R. 2944, the Sensenbrenner-Scott Over-Criminalization Task Force Safe, Accountable, Fair, Effective (SAFE) Justice Reinvestment Act of 2015, and I urge you to co-sponsor and help move this important legislation. We need to take affirmative steps to curb the trend towards over-incarceration in order to help save people, neighborhoods, communities, and our nation. Due to our nation’s apparent addiction to and over-reliance on criminalization and incarceration, in past 35 years, the federal government has added an estimated 2,000 new crimes to the books, while the federal imprisonment rate has grown by an astounding 518%. During the same period, annual spending on the federal prison system rose 595%, from $970 million to more than $6.7 billion, after adjusting for inflation. The trend toward over-incarceration has been especially hard on racial and ethnic minorities; more than 60% of the people in prison are now racial and ethnic minorities. H.R. 2944 draws on what has worked at the state level, and applies it to the federal criminal justice system. Specifically, if curtails over-criminalization by eliminating federal criminal penalties for simple drug possession in state jurisdictions; requiring public disclosure of regulatory criminal offenses; allowing victims of regulatory over-criminalization to contact the inspector general; restoring discretion to judges to determine to what extent manipulated conduct that results from fictitious law enforcement “stings” may be considered in court; protecting against wrongful convictions; and creating procedures to simplify charging and safely reduce pre-trial detention. Thank you for your attention to this crucial issue. I look forward to your support and to hearing in the very near future what you intend to do to help curb the problematic trend towards over-incarceration. Furthermore, I hope that you will let me know what more I can do. Sincerely, (sign and print your name and remember to include your address)

Sample Letter

Remember to contact your Representative and BOTH

your Senators.