US Attorney General, Eric Holder
Trying to keep a campaign promise to make drug sentencing more fair, the Obama administration issued a statement through US Attorney General Eric Holder to the US Sentencing Commission this week to amend its guidelines to reduce sentences for crack offenses. The harsh prison sentences that are levied against crack defendants in comparison to other cocaine users has long been a source of contempt among defense lawyers and civil rights activists because the sentences disproportionately impact minorities.
US Attorney General Holder said that the Obama administration not only wants to lower crack sentencing guidelines, but also wants to make the relief retroactive, a move that could reduce the sentences and affect 12,000 inmates that may get released much, much earlier than they expected. Holder issued the statement on the matter at a hearing of the Sentencing Commission, who must authorize retroactive application of the more lenient sentences. According to the Wall Street Journal, people convicted of crack cocaine offenses would be released over the next three years. Holder said at a news conference on Wednesday, “As years of experience and study have shown, there is simply no just or logical reason why [crack] punishments should be dramatically more severe than those of other cocaine offenders,”
The Fair Sentencing Act is considered an historic step forward by equaling out the disparity between penalties for crack and powered cocaine offenses, but realizing they have more to do than just pass this legislation going forward, justice needs to come to those that are being affected by those unfair sentences now. Just twelve months ago, before the fair sentencing act, a person caught with 50 grams of crack cocaine was assumed a dealer and would have to spend 10 years mandatory inside a prison. Today, that same sentence is about half of that, or five years. This would affect the federal prisoners only, or about 1 in 18 federal prisoners that could see an early release. Statistics bear out that black drug offenders are more likely to be charged with a federal crack offense than other offenders.
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Hi. So this bill has to be voted on. When will this be. How long after will prisoners see a release date? Thanks
I don’t use coke or crack, but any prison time for using or having any drug is really stupid.
It isn’t a bill or a law, but sentencing guidelines suggestions from the top of the Justice Department and top of the law enforcement food chain, our Attorney General, Eric Holder. The US Sentencing Commission is an eight-member panel of top judges and attorneys that decide the guidelines in sentencing for specific crimes given to federal judges. The suggested amendments must be voted on in the next meeting of the commission, but it is widely believed that they will go with the will of the current administration. They are suggesting that federal prisoners serving sentences that were handed down under the old guidelines, be released during the next three years as judges review and then commute their sentences.
I hope this new law goes through. Having a family member that’s been doing time for years is a hard thing to experience.
My sons father is currently doing 18 years for having 6,000 exctasy pills in federal prison. Is he able to get a shortened sentencing from this Bill? If so, how long till release ? He’s done 2or3 years n is suppose to get out in June 2024…
thank you for a quick response please…
I’m praying for a change in early release of the federal inmates. It us uncalled for to have such large sentence more than than a murder or child molester. My brothers are doing a 12 year sentence for crack cocaine I truly feel that they were illegally sentence. I pray they both come home early from this new law/bill passed. Your response is truly needed I will love to no if they can b released early.
I was just wondering is this bill also for the state prisons… If not, will it ever go in affect for State???