March 21, 2023
As cities across the nation grapple with effective
responses to increases in violent crime, a task force co-chaired by former U.S.
Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates and former U.S. Rep. Trey Gowdy today
released a
report outlining a comprehensive approach for the use of lengthy
prison sentences in the United States.
The report, How Long is Long Enough?, presents
14 recommendations to enhance judicial discretion in sentencing, promote
individual and system accountability, reduce racial and ethnic disparities,
better serve victims of crime, and increase public safety. Defining long
sentences as prison terms of 10 years or longer, the panel’s proposals include:
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Shifting savings from reductions in the
use of long prison sentences to programs that prevent violence and address the
trauma it causes individuals, families, and communities (Recommendation 1).
- ·
Allowing judges to consider all relevant
facts and circumstances when imposing a long sentence, and requiring that
sentencing enhancements based on criminal history are driven by individualized
assessments of risk and other factors (Recommendations 6 and 8)
- ·
Providing selective “second look”
sentence review opportunities and expanding access to sentence-reduction
credits (Recommendations 11 and 12)
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Focusing penalties in drug cases on a
person’s role in a trafficking organization, rather than the amount of drug
involved, (Recommendation 7)
- ·
Reducing recidivism by providing
behavioral health services and other rehabilitative living conditions and
opportunities in prison (Recommendations 3 and 13)
- ·
Strengthening services for all crime
victims and survivors by enforcing victims’ rights, removing barriers to
services, and creating restorative justice opportunities (Recommendations 2, 4,
and 9)
“Some may wonder, why would we even discuss the
nation’s use of long prison sentences now, amid a rise in homicide rates and
legitimate public concern about public safety? Because this is exactly the time
to examine what will actually make our communities safer and our system more
just,” Yates and Gowdy said in a joint statement accompanying the report. “When
crime rates increase, so do calls for stiffer sentencing, often without regard
to the effectiveness or fairness of those sentences. Criminal justice policy
should be based on facts and evidence, not rhetoric and emotion, and we should
be laser-focused on strategies that make the most effective use of our limited
resources.”
The report is the product of a year-long analysis by
the nonpartisan Council
on Criminal Justice (CCJ) Task Force on Long Sentences, which includes 16
members representing a broad range of experience and perspectives, from crime
victims and survivors to formerly incarcerated people, prosecutors, defense
attorneys, law enforcement, courts, and corrections. The panel examined the
effects of long sentences on the criminal justice system and the populations it
serves, including victims as well as people in prison, their families, and
correctional staff.
Drawing on sentencing data and research, including a
series of reports prepared for the Task Force, the sweeping recommendations
offer a comprehensive blueprint for action on a complex and polarizing topic.
According to an
updated analysis by CCJ, 63% of people in state prison in 2020 were
serving a sentence of 10 or more years, up from 46% in 2005, a shift due
largely to a decline in people serving shorter terms. During the same period,
the gap between Black and White people receiving long terms widened, from half
a percentage point to 4 percentage points. Though murder defendants were
the most likely to receive a long sentence, drug offenses accounted for the
largest share (20%) of those admitted to prison to serve 10 or more years.
“Our nation’s reliance on long sentences as a
response to violence requires us to wrestle with highly challenging questions
about the relationship between crime, punishment, and public safety,” Task
Force Director John Maki said. “Through their painstaking deliberations, our
members rose to the challenge and produced a set of recommendations that
recognize our need to advance public safety while respecting the humanity of
those most affected by long prison terms.”
To view the recommendations, as well as research
briefs, meeting summaries, and additional perspectives shared by members,
please visit the Task
Force website. Participants on CCJ task forces are asked to join a
consensus signifying that they endorse the general policy thrust and judgments
reached by the group, though not necessarily every finding and
recommendation.
Key Research Findings
To inform its deliberations, the Task Force
commissioned and reviewed research on a wide range of topics, including:
- ·
The public
safety impact of shortening lengthy prison sentences. Based on
first-of-their-kind calculations, this research estimated that reducing long
terms in Illinois (the state providing the data) would result in a very small
increase in arrests of any kind, and almost none for violent or weapons
offenses.
- ·
The impacts
of long sentences on public safety. Summarizing the existing research on
deterrence and incapacitation, the analysis finds that there are crime-reducing
effects but that they are limited and vary by offense.
- ·
International
comparisons. Researchers conducted original calculations to show
that the U.S. remains a global outlier in its use of long prison sentences,
even after accounting for the much higher homicide rate in the U.S., compared
to Europe, and for actual prison time served (vs. sentence length).
- ·
Trends
in the use of long prison sentences. Serving as a foundation for the Task
Force’s work, this analysis shows how state prison admissions, the standing
prison population, and releases changed from 2005 to 2019 and breaks down the
trends by offense type, race, age, and sex.
- ·
Factors
affecting time served in prison. Researchers examined how parole and
other “back end” discretion decisions influence how long people actually serve
behind bars.
·
Perspectives
of crime victims, formerly incarcerated individuals, and their families.
Through a series of interviews, victims and survivors offered their views on
the role of long sentences in achieving accountability and justice.
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