Some Chattanooga attorneys say an expansive criminal justice effort that hangs in the balance in Washington would give judges more discretion to decide punishments in federal drug cases that carry stiff, mandatory sentences.
Though news reports Friday said the reforms, backed by President Donald Trump, may not be passed in this legislative session, the bipartisan effort aims to increase vocational training, education, counseling and substance abuse treatment for inmates in the federal Bureau of Prisons.
The reforms would allow thousands of federal prisoners sentenced for crack cocaine offenses before August 2010 the opportunity to petition for a reduced penalty; lower mandatory minimums that have been in place since 1994 for some drug offenses; and reduce the life sentence for some drug offenders with three convictions, or “three strikes,” to 25 years.
Many of these reforms would not apply retroactively, but only to people with pending appeals or current charges. And news reports say roughly 90 percent of prison inmates are held in state facilities and would not be affected by the legislation. Still, some Chattanooga attorneys say, one of the biggest changes is federal judges would have greater latitude to consider lower-than-mandated sentences for people with minimal prior criminal history who are facing drug charges.
“It looks like it’s going to give the judges more discretion back to give people lower sentences when appropriate, which Congress prevented them from doing with certain mandatory minimums with its crime bill in 1994,” said Chattanooga defense attorney Jonathan Turner. “That’s a big deal.”