|
Updated 11.30.09
WHAT’S HAPPENING in Ohio
Fair Sentencing in Cuyahoga County
The ACLU of Ohio is a founding member of
Citizens for a Safe and Fair Cleveland,
a coalition created to work towards unbiased law enforcement and
judicial equity as related to drug laws.
In 2008, the coalition commissioned a
report by Dr. Mona Lynch, who studied drug cases in Cuyahoga County and
found that African Americans and those who lived in the city of Cleveland were more likely to be charged with a felony than their white and suburban counterparts.
Dr. Lynch also found that many people of color were being charged with felonies simply for having residue on paraphernalia, despite the fact that it is not typically considered a felony offense in most jurisdictions.
Using the report as a resource, the
coalition successfully lobbied Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson to change
the city's procedure for handling drug paraphernalia cases to reflect those followed by greater Cuyahoga County.
Read the Cleveland Plain Dealer editorial regarding
the importance of realistic drug policy for Cleveland.
Reducing the Prison Population
Senate Bill 22
would address Ohio's
over-crowded prison system by eliminating the
crack-cocaine sentencing disparity and mandatory minimum sentences for
many low-level drug crimes. It would also increase diversion programs
for low-level drug offenders in lieu of conviction. Read more about S.B.
22 on our
Criminal Justice page.
WHAT’S HAPPENING NATIONALLY
Federal Sentencing Disparity
In a historic move, the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security marked up the long awaited
Fairness in Cocaine Sentencing Act of 2009 (H.R. 3245), sponsored by Rep. Robert Scott (D-VA).
Currently, under federal law, a person caught with a certain amount of crack cocaine would be sentenced more harshly than a person caught with the same amount of powder cocaine. The
result has been an increased number of people of color convicted of serious crimes
with more time incarcerated.
Many of the myths surrounding crack cocaine have been dispelled; there is no scientific justification for the
sentencing 100-to-1 disparity.
Strip Searches in Schools
On June 25, the U.S Supreme Court
ruled
that school officials violated Savana Redding’s constitutional rights when they
strip searched her based on a classmate’s accusation that she had
ibuprofen.
Student Financial Aid
The 1965 Higher Education Act established federal financial aid programs such as Perkins Loans, Pell Grants and Work-Study.
In 1998, Congress enacted the Aid Elimination Penalty, which removed federal financial aid for anyone with a drug-related conviction. The provision hurts lower-income and minority students and families disproportionately, often preventing those that most need assistance from getting it. It also punishes a student twice for the same crime: once at sentencing, and again by eliminating financial aid options.
Check out
Injustice 101 from the ACLU’s Drug Law Reform Project for more information.
GET ACTIVE!
Urge your U.S.
representative to support the Fairness in Cocaine Sentencing Act of 2009.
University student governments across the country are calling for a
repeal of the Aid Elimination Penalty.
Here is a list of student organizations which have endorsed a
resolution recommending repeal, and recommended language.
RESOURCES
Freedom Files: Drug Wars
Check out this Cleveland Scene
article on sentencing disparity in Cuyahoga County.
Briefing paper:
Ohio's shameful track record on drug policy
Students! Know Your
Rights handbook
Citizens
for a Safe and Fair Cleveland
Families Against
Mandatory Minimums
Drug Policy
Alliance Network
ACLU Challenges Financial Aid Elimination provision
ACLU Drug Law Reform Project
Coalition for Higher Education Act Reform
Students for Sensible Drug Policy
|
news center
volunteer