Fair Sentencing

The drug war and racial profiling is a huge cause to mass incarceration. Vanita Gupta from the New York times wrote, “in 2003 I represented dozens of African-American residents in Tulia, Tex., who had been convicted after a botched drug sting. Jason Jerome Williams, a 22-year-old with no prior criminal record, had been sentenced to 45 years in prison for four sales of an eighth of an ounce of cocaine…, Others accepted plea deals to try to avoid such lengthy prison terms.” I do not think that drugs are okay to have, be sold, or to be under the influence of. But I do think that all of these sentences are way to long for these people. These are the sentences’ of those that commit way worse crimes like maybe killing someone or endangering some one else’s’ life.

In the late 1980’s and early 1990’s, drug use became a major concern for most Americans. As the War on Drugs and “Just Say No” campaign were being thrust into the spotlight by the government and media, the public became more aware of the scope of drug use and abuse in this country. The federal and states’ governments quickly responded by creating and implementing more harsh and punitive punishments for drug offenses. Most of these laws have either remained unchanged or become stricter in the years since then.

Mandatory minimum laws, which set different minimum sentences for crack and powder cocaine possession, are policies that are inflexible, “one-size-fits-all” sentencing laws that undermine the constitutional principle that the punishment should fit the crime and undermine the judicial power to punish an individual in context of the specific circumstances. Similarly, 3-strikes laws also ignores judicial discretion. Truth-in-sentencing policies refer to policies created to have a convict serve the full sentence, regardless of good behavior or other deterrent. These policies are created to only incapacitate people—more specifically minorities—not to rehabilitate them. More people in jail and longer sentences are not helping ensure public safety.

Most of us would agree that drug abuse and addiction is no respecter of persons. Regardless of age, race, gender, or economic status drug addiction can rear its ugly head in any situation. Like most Americans, I have personally been affected by the pitfalls of drug addiction from relatives and friends. Therefore, I have witnessed firsthand the devastation that it leaves on family members, friends, and the communities, in which they reside. Since its inception in 1986 the Anti-Drug Abuse Act, as caused more harm than good. At the start of this Act, Congress implemented maximum drug quantities initially targeted at “serious” and “major” drug traffickers. Congress concluded that 500 grams of powder cocaine would trigger a five-year mandatory minimum, and five kilograms would trigger a ten-year mandatory minimum. However, for crack cocaine the triggering quantities were significantly less. Only five grams of crack cocaine would prompt five-years and just fifty grams to prompt a ten-year sentence. This massive gap became known as the 100-to-1 sentencing disparity. Soon after several states began to legislate sentencing disparities between powder cocaine and crack cocaine into their criminal codes. The original targets of

What has society done about reforming sentencing laws in order to reduce the incarceration population? The fair sentencing Act which was signed by president Obama has helped reduce the number of inmates impacted by mandatory minimum sentencing by “reducing the disparity in the amounts of powder cocaine and crack cocaine required for the imposition of mandatory minimum sentences and eliminates the mandatory minimum sentence for simple possession of crack cocaine, it also increases penalties for major drug traffickers” (White House 2010). What the Act did was changed the ratio of Crack cocaine v Cocaine from 100:1 to 18:1 (U. S. Department of Justice 2010). This Act is beneficial because it

Since the inception of mandatory minimum cocaine laws in 1986 to the advent of the Armstrong case, not a single white offender had been convicted of a crack cocaine offense in federal courts serving Los Angeles and its six surrounding counties. Rather, virtually all white offenders were prosecuted in state court, where they were not subject to that drug’s lengthy mandatory minimum sentences. The impact of the decision to prosecute the black defendants in federal court was significant. In federal court they faced a mandatory minimum sentence of at least 10 years and a maximum of life without parole if convicted of selling more than 50 grams of crack. By contrast, if prosecuted in California state court, the defendants would have received a minimum sentence of three years and a maximum of five years (United States v. Armstrong, 1996).

Since the 1980s drug offenses have increased from nineteen thousand to two hundred sixty five thousand in 2008. For many years now, our jails have been struggling with overcrowding. In 2010, our President Barack Obama, signed the Fair Sentencing Act. The Fair Sentencing Act helps reduce disproportion between the amount of crack cocaine and powder cocaine. The act helps in determining whether a person who is caught with five grams of crack/ powder cocaine, should receive the same sentencing as someone who has one hundred times more than that. According to the National Governor’s Association, forty-six states were faced with a budget deficit. With the implementation of the Fair sentencing Act in place, we can begin to see the reduction in jail overcrowding.

The laws were strategically designed to disproportionately affect or communities. For example, before the passage of the Fair Sentencing Act in 2010, the possession and selling of crack cocaine (used predominantly in black communities) was harsher than possessing and selling powdered cocaine (used predominantly in other communities), even though data proved that both drugs had the same adverse effects on their consumers. It's unfortunate that as a result of certain illegal drugs now having a devastating impact on other communities, many are calling for sympathy and allocation of funds towards treatment, education, and prevention, but our community was faced with a frivolous "war on drugs"

When it comes to the War on Drugs and racial disparity, African Americans males are more likely to receive a higher prison sentence than their white counterparts. For example, there is disparity in sentencing regarding powder cocaine and crack cocaine. The judicial system provides a heavier prison sentence for crack than powder, even though it is better than previously. Crack and powder cocaine are both illegal substances that derive from the same drug, which is cocaine. Whites and African American drug addicts use these drugs; however, the difference is the distribution and use of the drugs targets distinct groups of people. White drug dealers use and sell powder cocaine more frequently in wealthier communities. Addicts abuse crack cocaine

It is widely recognized by an array of participants in the criminal justice system that there is an incredible amount of people in federal prison today. A significant reason for this is that too many nonviolent drug offenders have been sentenced to prison terms that are greater than necessary. The impact of the current amendments, slowly but surely, supports retroactive application throughout the incarceration system. Retroactive application is a matter of simple justice: It is unfair for thousands of prisoners to continue serving disproportionately severe punishments. So in light of this fact the United States Sentencing Commission, “an independent agency in the judicial branch of the federal government, was organized in 1985 to develop a national sentencing policy for the federal courts. The resulting sentencing guidelines provide structure for the courts’ sentencing discretion to help ensure that similar offenders who commit similar offenses receive similar sentences.” (USSC 2016)

The United States is not immune to the worldwide drug addiction epidemic. Drugs pour in from Mexico daily, then distributed to throughout the country. The economic crisis in America is creating an excuse for drug use (e.g., depression, hopelessness). This chemical fix not only creates problems for the addict, but the family and community as well. Every addict has an enabler, a person who makes the addiction possible through various venues of support (e.g., financial, denial). Addicts are only concerned with their next fix and will resort to any means to obtain it (e.g., theft, prostitution, pan-handling). Some have even resorted to extremely desperate measures; for example, murder for inheritance or life insurance proceeds.

There are many reasons, in America, that these perceptions about the poor continue to exist, however, researcher have little ability to gather valid data on poverty and its direct relationship to drug abuse.

Drug addiction has been happening for thousands of years. It is commonly known that addiction to drugs is poor for your health. However, drug addiction can affect an addict, their family, and their communities. Drug addiction needs more awareness and treatment because it leads to homelessness, crime, and broken families.

Drugs has been in our society since 1492, when Christopher Columbus discovered America. The Native American people gave him a taste of the first drug of tobacco. Later in time alcohol and caffeine became a new addiction to society. The history that these drugs have on the people, especially in the early 20th century, have been a big part of a public health discussion because people from all types of race buy or sell drugs. These drugs; society understands the demographics and race it changes. People still see it as drugs not being dangerous. The deadly influence of drugs come from different parts of the world, social media, and role models. Our society can reminds us the power the drugs have, but does not discriminate. These three drugs are everywhere in our community. Even though they do not face too much of criminal sanctions like the one who use the illegal drugs which would be marijuana and cocaine. Now between alcohol, caffeine and tobacco they are the most common drugs that society uses for many reason. This hard drugs people take them for non-medical reasons. Most of them use it to feel better about themselves. Though the once who abuse these drugs go through a much worse time because of the aftermath they face. Now with the history of the drugs it goes to show that “caffeine is more addictive than marijuana, alcohol is more intoxication than cocaine, and tobacco is more damaging to users’ health than ecstasy” (Shmoop Editorial Team, 2008). To those problems of being

The affects that drug abuse has on society is seen in many ways. It can cost someone’s work because of them taking so much time off, and not working up to their level of work. Drug abuse causes accidents and also endangers others in and around the abuser. Young children are affected in neighborhoods because they are asked to be a lookout for the drug abuser. It increases the homeless numbers. The cost it causes because of abusers serving a prison term and the state having to foot the bill, the money spent on trying to prevent drug use and abuse, and the cost of health care to an abuser. When a drug addict uses for a long period of time they may experience serious psychological problems because of the drug