The Sentencing Project is a Washington, D.C.–based research and advocacy centre working for decarceration in the United States and seeking to address racial disparities in the criminal justice system. The organisation produces nonpartisan reports and research for use by state and federal policymakers, administrators, and journalists.

History

The Sentencing Project grew out of pilot programs established by lawyer Malcolm C. Young in the early 1980s. In 1981, Young became the director of a project of the National Legal Aid & Defender Association (NLADA) designed to establish defence-based sentencing advocacy programs. In 1986, Young incorporated The Sentencing Project as an independent organisation to continue NLADA's program of training and development work. In the late 1980s, The Sentencing Project became engaged in research and public education on a broad range of criminal justice policy issues.

Advocacy

The Sentencing Project works with other organisations and public officials to influence criminal justice policies at the federal, state, and local level. The Sentencing Project was part of a national coalition supporting the bipartisan Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act in the 114th Congress. The organisation's executive director testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee in support of the legislation. In 2010, The Sentencing Project contributed to the passage of the Fair Sentencing Act, which reduced the disparities in sentences associated with convictions for possessing or trafficking in crack cocaine compared to

powder cocaine Cocaine is a tropane alkaloid and central nervous system stimulant, derived primarily from the leaves of two South American coca plants, ''Erythroxylum coca'' and ''Erythroxylum novogranatense, E. novogranatense'', which are cultivated a ...

. Representatives of the organisation have often testified before Congress, the U.S. Sentencing Commission, the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, and other government and scholarly meetings.

Research

In 2016, The Sentencing Project was active in the national debate about racial and ethnic disparities in arrests, sentencing and incarceration, and has monitored and reported on the denial of

voting rights Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise is the right to vote in representative democracy, public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally in ...

to individuals with felony convictions. It consistently criticises what it considers the ineffectiveness and excessive public expense associated with mass incarceration and extended prison terms. In 2016, the organisation produced a state-by-state breakdown on the

disenfranchisement Disfranchisement, also disenfranchisement (which has become more common since 1982) or voter disqualification, is the restriction of suffrage (the right to vote) of a person or group of people, or a practice that has the effect of preventing someo ...

of citizens convicted of

felonies A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "''félonie''") to describe an offense that ...

entitled ''Six Million Lost Voters''. It documented 6.1 million potential voters, including more than 4 million who had long since completed their sentences, unable to participate because of state laws disenfranchising them.

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

, a perennial swing state, led the country with 1.5 million people convicted of felonies who could not vote. In recent years, The Sentencing Project has published reports and research on mandatory minimum sentences and their impact on judicial discretion; the increased reliance in the courts on life sentences, often without opportunities for

parole Parole, also known as provisional release, supervised release, or being on paper, is a form of early release of a prisoner, prison inmate where the prisoner agrees to abide by behavioral conditions, including checking-in with their designated ...

; prison closures and repurposing; the impact of racial perceptions in criminal justice policy; the war on drugs and its collateral consequences; juvenile justice issues; women in prison; the children of prisoners and the long-term social impact of mass incarceration policies.

Leadership

Marc Mauer has been the executive director of The Sentencing Project since 2005. He has authored a number of books, articles, and studies about the criminal justice system. University of Pittsburgh School of Law professor David Harris called Mauer "the go-to guy for any major media organization or any legislative body that wants the truth on what's been happening with our prisons and our jails ... His testimony to the

Senate Judiciary Committee The United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, informally known as the Senate Judiciary Committee, is a Standing committee (United States Congress), standing committee of 22 U.S. senators whose role is to oversee the United States Departm ...

in October 2015 ... should be required reading for every public official in this country." The Sentencing Project is governed by a 10-member board of lawyers, academics, and practitioners, chaired by

American University The American University (AU or American) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Its main campus spans 90-acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, in the Spri ...

law professor Cynthia E. Jones.Cynthia Jones

References

External links

Official website

Project A project is a type of assignment, typically involving research or design, that is carefully planned to achieve a specific objective. An alternative view sees a project managerially as a sequence of events: a "set of interrelated tasks to be ...