The Real Experience: Part I

I'm trying to find a healthy way to express how I feel about social issues. This is my disclaimer that these are my personal opinions, and anyone I work for, work with, or may work with do not share these same views. Everyone is entitled to their own opinions about what I'm going to share.

I've had this obsession about the utter failure of the United States' justice system. I'm not a lawyer, nor do I claim to be. I'm just your average citizen who has an interest in politics and social issues. The specific aspect I want to discuss is the current way the United States deals with nonviolent drug offenders. I'm going to provide numbers. Numbers are facts. Not opinions.

How I feel about this topic

Quick Facts

Prison Size and Growth

"Since Congress created mandatory minimum sentences for drug crimes in the 1980s, the federal prison population has grown from 24,000 prisoners to over 214,000 prisoners - the largest prison system in the country."

"Over 2.7 million children have a parent behind bars in the U.S."

Prison Costs

"On average, it costs almost $29,000 to keep one person in federal prison for one year."

"State spending on corrections has grown 300% in the last 20 years."

"Taxpayers spend over $50 billion annually for state prisons."

Drug Offenders

"Nearly half of all federal prisoners are serving prison sentences for drugs."

"In 2012, only 6.6% of all federal drug offenders were considered leaders of a drug conspiracy."

"In 2012, only 15% of all federal drug offenders had a weapon involved in the offense."

Length of Incarceration of Lack of Alternatives

"In 2012, 96.5% of all federal drug offenders received prison sentences."

Application and Impact of Mandatory Minimums

"Almost 32% of people receiving a mandatory minimum sentence had little or no criminal record."

"Mandatory minimum sentences may actually motivate people to go to trial. According to the Commission, 94.1% of those convicted of an offense carrying a mandatory minimum pled guilty, while 97.5% of the offenders not facing a mandatory minimum pled guilty. The Commission also found that "the longer the mandatory minimum penalty an offender faces, the less likely he or she is to plead guilty".

Public Opinion

"88% agreed that we have too many low-risk, nonviolent offenders in prison. We need alternatives to incarceration that costs less and save our expensive prison space for violent and career criminals."

"77% of Americans support eliminating mandatory minimum sentences for nonviolent offenders."

Families Against Mandatory Minimums (FAMM) was created to reform how offenders receive punishments for crimes.

http://famm.org/the-facts-with-sources/

Religious Leaders Call for Reform

From my brief research, I was surprised to come across that even religious leaders are calling on Congress for reform.

"Faith communities fear that long sentences for drug offenses will negatively affect individuals, families, and communities, the Faith in Action Criminal Justice Reform Working Group said in a press release. The Smarter Sentencing Act (S 1410/HR 3382) proposes reducing mandatory-minimum sentences for federal drug offenses, which would address prison overcrowding, and is currently awaiting a Senate vote."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/06/03/religious-leaders-drug-reform_n_5438181.html

Overcrowded Prisons

Roughly 50% of inmates in federal prisons are drug offenders. Immigration-related crimes only make up 10.6%. Does that not clearly depict that there's something wrong? The good news is that the Obama administration has voiced outcry to the current mandatory prison sentences. The administration's goal is to cut the mandatory minimums in half.

What is the Solution?

The numbers and facts I've divulged supports my opinion that there is a problem in our nation. Too many individuals are being place in prison. As crazy as it sounds, I believe the best way to tackle the drug epidemic is to simply decriminalize.

In the early 2000s, Portugal decriminalized ALL drugs. Before Portugal did so, it had a malicious drug problem. 1% of the population was addicted to heroin, and HIV was becoming a huge problem because of needle sharing. Year after year Portugal approached the issue like the U.S., harsher conditions, not much public support, and no effective program to reintroduce prisoners to society.

Here we are in 2015, and drug abuse has dropped by half. The majority of the decline came from users aged 15-24 years old. I was astonished to find that the percentage of the population who have never used a drug decreased too. Drug-induced deaths have also decreased, along with HIV.

Lifetime drug use increased, but addiction and problematic drug use went down; which is really the issue at hand. The success in Portugal can't be attributed only because drugs were decriminalized. Because of the excess money not being spent on arrests and court costs, the money is going into treatment and preventative care. The recent economic troubles in Portugal will definitely test the system at hand. I really do hope the success continues for the beautiful country and people of Portugal.

Popular Science reports on new and innovative news that affects society.

http://www.popsci.com/science-decriminalize-legalize-drugs-marijuana-weed

.Mic is a youth oriented news provider. They're eager to make the world a better place by providing hard-hitting information. 

http://mic.com/articles/110344/14-years-after-portugal-decriminalized-all-drugs-here-s-what-s-happening

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/02/03/portugal-drug-decriminalization_n_6606056.html