Eric Holder: Many "Low-Level, Nonviolent Drug Offenders" Will No Longer Face Mandatory Minimums

Eric Holder: Many "Low-Level, Nonviolent Drug Offenders" Will No Longer Face Mandatory Minimums

www.buzzfeed.com

he Department of Justice is changing how it prosecutes thousands of drug offenders, Attorney General Eric Holder is expected to announce Monday.

The government will no longer pursue strict “mandatory minimums” for “low-level, nonviolent drug offenders who have no ties to large-scale organizations, gangs or cartels,” according to an advance copy of Holder’s remarks obtained by BuzzFeed. “By reserving the most severe penalties for serious, high-level or violent drug traffickers, we can better promote public safety, deterrence and rehabilitation, while making our expenditures smart

(visit the link for the full news article)

In 2010, federal prisons cost the U.S. government $80 million. In 2011, nearly half of all federal inmates were incarcerated for drug-related offenses.

Well this is good.. the government needs to focus on actual violent offenders instead of drug users.. Surprising since the surge in private prisons over the last decade.....Maybe one day America will see the end of the war on drugs..

www.buzzfeed.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

A step in the right direction, but still a long journey to undue the damage caused by the War on Drugs.

Good. Catching people carrying Marijuana(a natural plant) and putting them in prison for years, costing the same as to maintain a first degree murderer.

There are serious criminals to catch and use the budget instead of kids wanting to get high.

Oh enough with the imperial edicts and declarations from 'on high' because they think it ought to be a certain way.

This is all P.R. and NOTHING meaningful. It lets HIM and HIS people get all particular and choosy about who they send away forever and who they cut breaks to by virtue of which charge they pick from the book. Not much different than has always happened (they used to just call it discretion or corruption, depending on which side one was on).

If he wants CHANGE... Look to Congress to CHANGE the law. If he wants cheap stunts for P.R. and votes to his party? Do silly crap like this.

When the next administration comes in, it cal start enforcing the law as it's actually written, not how those in office kinda 'deem' it ought to be ....and we'll rightly wonder why these idiots now didn't CHANGE rather that play with things.

Booo on cheap politics and more disregard for the actual law. Why change what can be ignored?

If you can't say something nice...

Think about what you said, and edit your post before it becomes set in stone!

reply to post by WaterBottle


Yea, maybe this will put a stop to roadside cavity searches over a possible marijuana cigarette.
I dont do any of that stuff anymore but I always thought it was stupid to throw someone in prison for
a few ounces of pot.
First thing this tool has done right since he was appointed AG

With the Air Force recently being busted flying in coke to Miami, this does not surprise me. It seems they want to increase their black market revenue by doing this. This will create more users (which is their right if they choose what they want to put in their bodies) without fear of major penalty, thus generating more revenue to the "mob (black ops)".

Originally posted by Unmask The Deception
With the Air Force recently being busted flying in coke to Miami, this does not surprise me. It seems they want to increase their black market revenue by doing this. This will create more users (which is their right if they choose what they want to put in their bodies) without fear of major penalty, thus generating more revenue to the "mob (black ops)".

Ah yes the ATS view, which makes perfect logical sense.

Because if they really wanted to do something they would institute laws (like wrabbit said) and decriminalize cutting off black market revenue entirely.

Clearly something not in their best interest.

They would also need to overturn all the previous minor drug offenses sentenced under Mandatory limits, and possible face liability there.

So again, pandering that means = Keep dems in office cause reps hate minor drugs. etc.

I am all for this, and could there be a chance of amnesty for others, get this off their record.

If they take a step to legalize and I am not for drugs and alcohol at all, just think a smoker should not have to be penalized forever for being caught, ruining his chances for employment even though they have turned their life around.

reply to post by benrl

They would also need to overturn all the previous minor drug offenses sentenced under Mandatory limits, and possible face liability there.

yes, know a guy who went back to school now in college,top of his class, has been straight for years, but can't get hired in his field because of this record hanging over his head.

It is ridiculous to punish someone forever.

Especially when we have a man that admits to doing drugs running the country.

Originally posted by Stormdancer777
reply to post by benrl

 

They would also need to overturn all the previous minor drug offenses sentenced under Mandatory limits, and possible face liability there.

yes, know a guy who went back to school now in college,top of his class, has been straight for years, but can't get hired in his field because of this record hanging over his head.

It is ridiculous to punish someone forever.

Especially when we have a man that admits to doing drugs running the country.

edit on 013131p://bMonday2013 by Stormdancer777 because: (no reason given)

NOT just doing, GROWING, thats distribution.

The drug cartel murders hundreds of thousands of people

The drug cartel has thousands and thousands of sex slaves

The drug cartel smuggles your weed across the border

You buy this weed, and act like you are a peaceful person who hasnt hurt anybody, when you just funded countless slaughterings in South America.

Originally posted by Wrabbit2000
Oh enough with the imperial edicts and declarations from 'on high' because they think it ought to be a certain way.

This is all P.R. and NOTHING meaningful. It lets HIM and HIS people get all particular and choosy about who they send away forever and who they cut breaks to by virtue of which charge they pick from the book. Not much different than has always happened (they used to just call it discretion or corruption, depending on which side one was on).

If he wants CHANGE... Look to Congress to CHANGE the law. If he wants cheap stunts for P.R. and votes to his party? Do silly crap like this.

When the next administration comes in, it cal start enforcing the law as it's actually written, not how those in office kinda 'deem' it ought to be ....and we'll rightly wonder why these idiots now didn't CHANGE rather that play with things.

Booo on cheap politics and more disregard for the actual law. Why change what can be ignored?

No, The issue here is Non-violent drug offenders and the cost of keeping them in prison. Nothing more, Nothing less. Do you think Non- Violent drug offenders should be locked up for a length of time? If you do, Then you foot the bill and stop complaining about it.You will say you are not complaining. I say you may have issues with drug users and think they should be locked away. Let me know where you stand on this.

Originally posted by Mikeyy
The drug cartel murders hundreds of thousands of people

The drug cartel has thousands and thousands of sex slaves

The drug cartel smuggles your weed across the border

You buy this weed, and act like you are a peaceful person who hasnt hurt anybody, when you just funded countless slaughterings in South America.

Do you drive a car that runs on oil? Own items made of plastic? Use any of the majority of personal care products or even make use of things made of rubber?

Err... The world has reached a point where almost everything important in life has a cartel of one form or another which runs it or fights with others to run it. What a world, eh?

reply to post by russ1969


Russ, if it were about the actual law, Holder would be looking to change the law. He isn't though. His big "change" is simply that he can interpret it in a new way and then, enforce it to a different level or priority.

The next Attorney General can go right back to enforcing it as strongly as Ashcroft or any before him. Unless the law changes to drop these draconian minimum sentences in the first place, then 'change' is an empty 'hope' and nothing but a bumper sticker slogan.

Careful there Eric !!

What will the private contract prisons do if you reduce their 'guest' levels ?

Think about that Eric.

Unless of course you a just creating a red herring for political vote mining.

I see this as a small part of the US and Drug Cartels working together on a compromise that includes Drug Cartels being the new Alquida terrorist for the US military over seas. First you had Iraq Men's Club in California supplying IEDS to Drug Cartels. Then you fin d out about Fast and Furious and Wide Receiver gun smuggling. Then Drug Cartels records are sealed for 12 years in Mexico. Then you have the US Air Force with 20 million pounds of Cocaine at the Miami International airport. Turkey and Colombia dropping the need for passports. Colombian Drug Cartel members flying to Turkey to fight as Syrian Rebels.

Did the US make a deal with Drug Cartels? We will let you transport drugs to Turkey and you must go there and fight Syria? The US gets some nasty fighters in Syria. The drugs leave America and goes over seas away from the US. And Drug Cartels get to avoid being hunted down and killed by SOCOM operating in South America. The violence in South America will drop as the nastiest of the nasty go to Syria. Sounds like they are making deals with the devil again.

And this would fall in line with the Edmunds story about a secret terrorist spy ring in Turkey and South America .

Originally posted by Mikeyy
The drug cartel murders hundreds of thousands of people

yup they certainly do, them and "motorcycle gangs", as well as other types of gangs. ALL made POSSIBLE by the "war on drugs" making drugs a VERY PROFITABLE enterprise.

The drug cartel has thousands and thousands of sex slaves

yup the SAME groups certainly do, partially financed by the same profits generated from drugs made expensive but no less popular by the "war on drugs". that combined with the fact that prostitution is ILLEGAL as well making it both a profitable venture, and one that is hidden within the shadows because ALL prostitution is ILLEGAL. i suspect if prostitution was legal (not a fan of that myself), it would not only REDUCE the profitability of "sex slaves", but also make them harder to hide within a LEGAL setup where those that CHOOSE that lifestyle (and YES MANY DO CHOOSE it freely) would "out" the illegals.

The drug cartel smuggles your weed across the border

You buy this weed, and act like you are a peaceful person who hasnt hurt anybody, when you just funded countless slaughterings in South America.

actually only SOME "marijuana" is smuggled across the SOUTHERN border. it ALSO comes in from Canada, some "major crime" controlled, some not. not to mention IT IS GROWN ACROSS THE UNITED STATES as well. in FACT "weed" is NOT the BIG CASH EARNER for the CARTELS, that would be COCAINE. in fact the primary REASON they can both supply "weed" and profit from it, is because of the war on drugs taking out LOCAL growers of it in the US. so if you think of it in that way the WAR ON DRUGS is JUST AS MUCH AT FAULT for those problems as the criminals are themselves. just like "prohibition" made the "gangsters" POWERFUL and RICH, so the war on drugs does the same for today's criminals. in fact due to this, if they were to totally LEGALIZE just marijuana alone, it would SEVERELY HURT such organizations, not only because of taking cash and power away from such criminals. but if marijuana was legal many people would not turn to harder drugs when "marijuana" is unavailable because of shipments seized and "grow op's" taken down.

With only 5% of the world’s population, the U.S. has 25% of the world’s prison population – that makes us the world’s largest jailer.

www.aclu.org...

This has been mentioned on CNN a couple of times, over the last couple of days.

Maybe not HAVING to put someone in prison for minor offenses would help.

Otherwise, the US needs to stop calling itself "the land of the free"