Obama Seeks to Change Crack Sentences

I thought they changed the sentencing guidelines for crack to equal cocaine approximately 2 years ago? Again wasted energy by the current administration, or smoke and mirrors doctrine.

I agree with BobMigs. Your judges do live in a bubble. I was testifying in court one time as a gang expert, and I had a judge tell me that he did not believe my expert opinion on vice lords because he learned everthing there was to know twenty years ago in Kansas City by watching "Colors."

Our prisons are over crowded. Gangs and their visitors run the streets in and out of prison.

Instead of closing GITMO and places like it, let's change the intake process.

When the terror suspects are transferred, let's start housing hard core drug dealers.

No easy access to your gang affiliates, loss of control of your drug corner. No contraband.

If you escape, will Fidel and his family take you in?

Let's bring back prison ships too.

Build our new prisons in the most desolate, harsh and difficult to reach parts of your states.

Long drives for visitors (makes it easier to conduct surveillance on those who would threaten staff) discourage flow of communications to gang networks.

Instead of current visitation set up TELECONFERENCE.

That's right, visitors in one building, inmates in another. Webcams, microphones and little cubicles with a 17 inch flat screen TV,

In Arapahoe County, CO if you get arrested, that's how you "go to court".

No trip from the jail across town to the courthouse.

They walk you to the secure room. You see the judge on the big screen, stare into the camera and plead your case.

Not like Atlanta, where you can kill LEO's on the way to court and run amok.

As far as the kind of drugs and penalties?

Drugs are either legal, or illegal.

Question for U.S. District Judge Reggie Walton and the great Sen. Dick Durbin: Why is it called a controlled substance again?

If only 25 per cent of those who made bombs with illegal explosive were white and 75 per cent of those killed by illegal terrorist explosive devices were black, would the 25 out of 100 whites who were bombers be able to play the race card?

Our prisons are over crowded. Gangs and their visitors run the streets in and out of prison.

Instead of closing GITMO and places like it, let's change the intake process.

When the terror suspects are transferred, let's start housing hard core drug dealers.

No easy access to your gang affiliates, loss of control of your drug corner. No contraband.

If you escape, will Fidel and his family take you in?

Let's bring back prison ships too.

Build our new prisons in the most desolate, harsh and difficult to reach parts of your states.

Long drives for visitors (makes it easier to conduct surveillance on those who would threaten staff) discourage flow of communications to gang networks.

Instead of current visitation set up TELECONFERENCE.

That's right, visitors in one building, inmates in another. Webcams, microphones and little cubicles with a 17 inch flat screen TV,

In Arapahoe County, CO if you get arrested, that's how you "go to court".

No trip from the jail across town to the courthouse.

They walk you to the secure room. You see the judge on the big screen, stare into the camera and plead your case.

Not like Atlanta, where you can kill LEO's on the way to court and run amok.

As far as the kind of drugs and penalties?

Drugs are either legal, or illegal.

Question for U.S. District Judge Reggie Walton and the great Sen. Dick Durbin: Why is it called a controlled substance again?

If only 25 per cent of those who made bombs with illegal explosive were white and 75 per cent of those killed by illegal terrorist explosive devices were black, would the 25 out of 100 whites who were bombers be able to play the race card?

How about lowering the powder cocaine limits to equal the crack limits. Oh No, then we may put too many white business men in jail. The powder is used by ALL wealth levels in whites but the smart people, know they can get powder and cook it into crack and make upto 5 times as much money. It's not a racial thing, it's the lazy lower income people, who are on government aid, that sell the crack. Yes in my area most crack users are low income whites, but the crack dealers are low income blacks. Hispanics and whites sell powder. As far as treatment, you can't treat GREED, you can only treat the users. Put the dealers in jail. On the state level of prosocution most dealers are given light or no time in jail. If the "CHANGE" administration has it's way, Federal prosicution will be light also......
It might be a good time for us to look into dealing crack... because it just may pay off.

Ron posted: "Dick Durban points out the 81% of those in prison for crack offenses are African-American while only 25% of them are actual users."
No, that's not what he said. Durban said that 81% of those in prison for crack offenses are African American, while only 25% of crack cocaine users are African American. That's where the disparity is. If 25% of crack users are African Americans, why are 81% of the people in prison for crack offenses African American? Dealers? Sure, that would account for a few more, but certainly not 56%.

I think the problem here is not race or the difference between crack and powder. I think the problem here is both the government and the people of this great country both want to soften our punishment for breaking laws. It will not be long before possession of marijuana is legal in all 50 states. I would like to see the laws that we have enforced and prosecuted to the letter of the law. Take the probation out of the mix and start putting people in jail. Changing laws and punishment because they seem racial because of who is arrested and prosecuted is absurd. If a higher number of purple people are arrested for breaking a law, might it be possible that purple people actually break that law more often than do other people. I will allow you to stand on the US / Mexico border to make this decision. I would be willing to bet that more Mexicans cross that border in violation of law than do any other nationality. Seriously, cant we all just get along?

I think the problem here is not race or the difference between crack and powder. I think the problem here is both the government and the people of this great country both want to soften our punishment for breaking laws. It will not be long before possession of marijuana is legal in all 50 states. I would like to see the laws that we have enforced and prosecuted to the letter of the law. Take the probation out of the mix and start putting people in jail. Changing laws and punishment because they seem racial because of who is arrested and prosecuted is absurd. If a higher number of purple people are arrested for breaking a law, might it be possible that purple people actually break that law more often than do other people. I will allow you to stand on the US / Mexico border to make this decision. I would be willing to bet that more Mexicans cross that border in violation of law than do any other nationality. Seriously, cant we all just get along?

This disparity exists because the CONGRESSIONAL BLACK CAUCUS DEMANDED STIFFER PENALTIES FOR CRACK! I would have expected a U.S. District Judge to be aware of this history and avoid such rhetoric. For a thorough explanation of the hypocrisy on this issue, read the aptly titled "Bamboozled" by Angela McGlowan.