Poll Shows Americans Overwhelmingly Support Criminal Justice Reforms like those in Grassley-Durbin Legislation
WASHINGTON – A recent poll, commissioned by the Justice
Action Network and conducted by Public Opinion Strategies, indicates
overwhelming support for reforms to America’s criminal justice system. Many
questions put to poll respondents align closely with the proposed reforms in
the Sentencing Reform and
Corrections Act, a bipartisan bill introduced by
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Senate
Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.).
“This poll is yet another indication that the American people have an appetite for better, smarter government, especially when it comes to our criminal justice system,” Grassley said. “While the political landscape in Washington has changed over the last two years, the same problems persist within our current sentencing regime and prison programs. Our bipartisan bill takes the right steps to address many of these problems by being tough on crime while ensuring the punishments fit the crime.”
Important highlights from the
poll:
-
87
percent of
those polled favor replacing mandatory minimum sentences for non-violent
offenders;
-
76
percent of
those polled think the criminal justice system needs significant improvements;
-
73
percent of
those polled say the U.S. spends too much money on prisons, money that could be
used for treatment, rehabilitation, law enforcement and victim services;
-
91
percent of
those polled say prison programs should be reviewed to ensure taxpayers are
getting the best bang for their buck.
Poll results can be found here and a memo from the polling
company can be found here.
The
Sentencing
Reform and Corrections Act of 2017 was introduced last October to recalibrate
prison sentences for nonviolent drug offenders, target violent and career
criminals and save taxpayer dollars. The legislation permits more judicial
discretion at sentencing for offenders with minimal criminal histories and
helps inmates successfully reenter society, while tightening penalties for
violent criminals and preserving key prosecutorial tools for law enforcement. In addition to Senators Grassley
and Durbin, the bill is cosponsored by Senators Mike Lee (R-Utah), Sheldon
Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Jeff Flake
(R-Ariz.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Tim Scott (R-S.C.), Dianne Feinstein
(D-Calif.), Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn).
A
bill summary can be found here, a
section-by-section outline of the bill can be found here and full
legislative text of the bill can be found here.
-30-
