President Joe Biden has commuted the sentences of 31 people convicted of nonviolent drug crimes who were serving time in home confinement, the White House announced, as reported by The Associated Press.
Many would have gotten a lower sentence if they were
charged today with the same offense because
of changes in the laws. A commuted sentence means they’ll spend less time
in home confinement.
The commutations came as the White House announced a
set of policy actions across 20 different agencies meant to improve the
criminal justice system, which
disproportionately affects Black and other non-white communities. The
president announced his
reelection campaign this week, and must keep Black voters in his coalition
if he wants to win in 2024.
The plan is an effort to expand health care access,
affordable housing and education, and make it easier for those who have been
mixed up in the system to get jobs, higher education and vote. The effort
includes a plan to make more grants available for people who need funding for
education, and small business loans.
Those whose sentences were commuted included men and
women convicted of drug possession in Iowa, Indiana, Mississippi, Florida,
Alabama, Georgia, Hawaii and Texas, and they will all finish serving time June
30. If any are in prison, they will finish out their terms in home confinement,
and won’t have to pay the rest of their fines which range from $5,000 to
$20,000.
Roughly 600,000 U.S. residents leave prison each
year, and another 9 million cycle in and out of jail. As many as one in three
Americans has a criminal record. That stigma can make it hard to get a job, go
back to school or start a business.
“Far too many of them face steep barriers to getting
a job or a home, obtaining health care, or finding the capital to start a
business,” said outgoing domestic policy adviser Susan Rice, the first person
to hold both national security and domestic policy adviser positions in the
White House. She is leaving her post after two years and her last day is May
26.
“By investing in crime prevention and a fairer
criminal justice system, we can tackle the root causes of crime, improve
individual and community outcomes, and ease the burden on police,” she said.
The Democratic president has commuted the sentences
of 75 other people so far. He also pardoned thousands who were convicted of
“simple possession” of marijuana under federal law, and
others who have long since served out their sentences.
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