Criminal justice reform

Criminal justice reform is a type of reform aimed at fixing perceived errors in the criminal justice system. Goals of such reform include decreasing the United States' prison population[1] and reducing prison sentences and eliminating mandatory minimum sentences for low-level drug offenders.[2] Although originally a mainly liberal cause, the criminal justice reform movement has attracted support from members of the Republican Party beginning in the early 2010s.[3][4] This has led to a significant amount of bipartisan agreement among American politicians in favor of criminal justice reform, making it one of few issues on which many politicians from both the Democratic and Republican parties agree.[2]

Arguments

Arguments that have been advanced in support of criminal justice reform include that the prison population of the United States costs about $80 billion per year to maintain.[5] Supporters of this type of reform also argue that the War on Drugs has been a failure.[5] Conservatives who support criminal justice reform are also often concerned about the fiscal and moral impacts of mass incarceration.[4]

References

  1. ↑ Eaglin, Jessica (28 February 2015). "It’s time for Congress to be bold on criminal justice reform". MSNBC. Retrieved 2 March 2015.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Cole, David (4 December 2014). "The Disgrace of Our Criminal Justice". New York Review of Books. Retrieved 2 March 2015.
  3. ↑ Dagan, David (November–December 2012). "The Conservative War on Prisons". Washington Monthly. Retrieved 2 March 2015.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Khan, Naureen (28 February 2015). "Criminal justice reform finds new champions, on the right". Al Jazeera America. Retrieved 2 March 2015.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Heuvel, Katrina Vanden (18 November 2014). "The moral and political case for reforming the criminal justice system". Washington Post. Retrieved 2 March 2015.