WASHINGTON D.C. – After voting in favor of the bipartisan First Step Act, which makes important reforms to the criminal justice system, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) released the following statement:
“This bipartisan legislation is an important step in the right direction that will make our criminal justice system fairer and more effective. It will relieve overcrowded prisons, prohibit inhumane practices like the shackling of pregnant prisoners and reform ineffective sentencing requirements to empower judges to exercise appropriate discretion when sentencing individuals for low-level, non-violent offenses. It will also retroactively reduce the disparity between crack and powder cocaine, which has disproportionately incarcerated people of color for longer periods of time.
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“Critically, this legislation will also make it easier for incarcerated individuals to stay in touch with their loved ones and it will provide them with greater access to educational and vocational programs, as well as improve the use of reentry programs, to help reduce recidivism and make it easier for former prisoners to have a chance to succeed and contribute to their communities once they have repaid their debt to society.
“We still have a long way to go but I want to applaud my colleagues, especially Senator Durbin, for his leadership and for building a broad coalition of law enforcement officials, district attorneys, civil rights leaders and criminal justice reform advocates to get this bipartisan legislation across the finish line.”
