...more "crack cocaine" crimes comin' to you... Honkies!
Here's your (real) Change....
Posted on 04/29/2009 5:26:36 AM PDT by prairiebreeze
WASHINGTON – The Obama administration is asking Congress to close the big gap in prison sentences for dealing crack versus powdered cocaine, a law that critics say is unfair to blacks.
Such sentencing reform efforts tend to focus on lowering the mandatory minimum sentences for crack cocaine possession, but in prepared testimony to the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Drugs, Assistant Attorney General Lanny Breuer did not spell out exactly how the administration hopes to make the law more fair.
"The administration believes Congress' goal should be to completely eliminate the disparity in prison sentences between crack cocaine and powdered cocaine," Breuer said in written testimony to be delivered Wednesday.
~~snip~~
Since then, Breuer argued, prosecutors' views of crack cocaine has evolved to a more "refined understanding" of crack and powdered cocaine usage.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
Liberals Win: Crack Dealer Sentences Slashed, So the Good Old Days Are Back
Earlier this year, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines Commission finally succumbed to years of immense political pressure from the NAACP, left-wing judges, the ACLU and other liberal groups to decriminalize the federal penalties for trafficking in crack cocaine. Now upwards of 20,000 crack dealers will be released back on inner-city streets within the next 12 months
Seeing the damage crack was causing in the black community, blacks were the ones originally calling for increased sentences for dealing crack.
Be careful what you wish for...
So here is the difference between conservatives and liberals.
The conservative sees this situation and says “Your right. The sentencing should be the same. Double the time powdered cocaine dealers get!”
The liberal sees it and says “Your right the sentences should be the same slash the penalty for dealing crack to half!”
That is one conflicted man. Looks like his ‘White Side’ loses this round...or maybe his ‘Black Side’ does? Either way, blacks and whites will be victimized equally when even more crackheads hit the streets, so I guess it’s OK. *SHRUG*
Everything this Boy/King ‘decrees’ is so @ss-backwards to how I think, it astonishes me anew each day!
Easy to hit Obama on this one, but crack and coke are the same d*mn thing. Sentences should be the same.
is this not Affirmative Action applied to crime sentencing?
When the Cities crime rate goes up lets see what all those Democratic Mayors say.
If you think I'm being sarcastic, well, think again.
There is a growing list of crimes that a black cannot commit.
There is a reason for the sentence disparity. First, people are more willing to risk conviction for crack, so you need higher penalties NOT because the use is worse, but because that’s what you need to deter the users.
Second, people who deal in powdered cocaine do not victimize other people like people dealing in crack cocaine. This is sometimes seen as a racist argument, but it is simple fact — crack cocaine leads to other crimes, while most of the powdered cocaine use is simply recreational by people who don’t commit other crimes.
It is true that this means we don’t throw the rich white kid in jail for cocaine, but we do throw the poor black kid in jail for crack. But that’s because the rich white kid isn’t doing any other crime, while the poor black kid is likely to assault and rob someone to pay for his next hit.
If powdered and crack cocaine were identical, they wouldn’t have two names. Nobody is keeping minorities from using powdered cocaine if they really just want to avoid prison. They are taking the chance of higher sentences because they have a greater desire for crack cocaine. Makine the sentence less will obviously drive more people to use crack.
Yes, but I have to agree with what Syntyr says in #3.
“When the Cities crime rate goes up lets see what all those Democratic Mayors say”.
...Democratic stronghold cities already have alarming crime rates. Nobody says a word. They always throw more money into schools and rec centers to fix the problem They did that here in Richmond, VA. No changes. The rec centers gave crack dealers a new place to sell.
I couldn’t agree more.
And in your response, there was no reference or indication of sex, color, or creed.
But the article (from AP no less) constantly refers to one particular ‘color’.
And they call us ‘racist’??????
Best sentence is LIFE WITHOUT PAROLE. That way everyone gets the same sentence ~ no discrimination at all, although blacks get off light since they generally have shorter lifespans than others.
That’s been a big problem for a long time. We need more crack dealers on the streets. It’s almost impossible to get an 8-ball anymore.
I know. You are probably right.
I work near Detroit. I see it too. One well known black Detroit lawyer said “The only difference between a 3rd world country and Detroit is goats in the streets.”
There is a world of difference between someone that has been hitting the crack pipe and someone having a few lines.
I’m OK with that.
Here's your (real) Change....
I think life is a bit harsh for possession, for dealing, I tend to lean that direction.
Think I’ll leave the last part alone. ;)
Consider a system where:
There are only two sentences. Only two crimes.
Theft and Murder.
All things that we consider criminal, are based on the idea they are theft of some kind. So, we keep it simple.
THEFT - Seven years prison. No options.
MURDER(theft of life) - Life in prison. No options.
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