Obama plans clemency for hundreds of drug offenders

[Jazzy]

DUBLIN, Calif—Scrawled on the inside of Barbara Scrivner's left arm is a primitive prison tattoo that says "Time Flies."

If only that were the case.

Scrivner is one of those rare prisoners who nearly everyone agrees is serving too much time for her crime. She started using drugs when she was just 8 years old, and moved on to meth as a freshman in high school, when she began dating the first of a long string of drug-using boyfriends. The drugs helped her escape the fog of depression that settled over her, in part created by the confused anguish she felt about being sexually abused as a child. By the time she was 20, she had been busted and served time in state prison for possessing meth — twice. That's when she met her husband, a heroin addict and meth dealer who became her downfall. When his drug ring was broken up by the feds, Scrivner refused to testify against him or any other members. She was prosecuted for conspiracy and slammed with a 30-year mandatory minimum, despite her minor role as an occasional helper to her husband.

The judge who sentenced her to 30 years said his hands were tied. He was forced to lock her up for that long because of a now-defunct mandatory minimum-sentencing regime. If he heard her case today, he'd give her 10 or 15 years, he's said. The prosecutors in the Portland, Ore., office that charged her agreed that if she were prosecuted today, she'd almost certainly get a sentence shorter than the 20 years she's already served.

Thousands and thousands of people like Scrivner are serving punishingly long sentences in federal prison based on draconian policies that were a relic of the "tough on crime" antidrug laws of the '80s and '90s. Thirty years after skyrocketing urban violence and drug use sparked politicians to impose longer and longer sentences for drug crimes, America now incarcerates a higher rate of its population than any other country in the world. This dubious record has finally provoked a bipartisan backlash against such stiff penalties. The old laws are slowly being repealed.

Now, in his final years in office, Obama has trained his sights on prisoners like Scrivner, and wants to use his previously dormant pardon power as part of a larger strategy to restore fairness to the criminal-justice system. A senior administration official tells Yahoo News the president could grant clemency to "hundreds, perhaps thousands" of people locked up for nonviolent drug crimes by the time he leaves office — a stunning number that hasn't been seen since Gerald Ford extended amnesty to Vietnam draft dodgers in the 1970s.

Full article

Do you think these drug offenders deserve clemency? Why / Why not?

 

[DrLeftover]

Some probably do, some probably don't, but the point of the exercise should be...


How many of them are going to walk out of prison and walk right back into the same life that got them sent up to begin with?

My guess would be, about 2/3.

 

[WHO IS SERAFIN]

She knew the law. She had a chance for a lighter sentence to get drug dealers off the street that give these drugs to kids. She got what she deserves and deserves no breaks or special treatment.

What I am curios about is are the states where these people are getting released are the ones eligible to vote again. Like in Florida she could never vote again. Because you know full well they are going to be living on the peoples dime through government handouts and that means they are voting leftist democrats.

 

[Jazzy]

@TRUE LIBERTY: Yes, they will be able to vote again even in Florida:

What is a Pardon?
A pardon is a method through which an executive authority legally forgives someone for a crime, and reinstates rights lost post-conviction. Pardons are different than exonerations; they are not an acknowledgement of wrongful conviction, just a restoration of the civil status the person had prior to the conviction.

There are a few different types of pardons, which differ from state to state. In the federal system, there are full pardons and conditional pardons. A full pardon gives the convicted person back the status they had prior to conviction. Any rights that were lost are reinstated. The records are not erased however. A conditional pardon can be issued in exchange for something; a pardon will be granted if the person meets a certain condition, or complies with a request.

Why do pardons matter?
In the United States, when someone commits of a felony, they lose many of their rights. States differ slightly on what exactly felons lose post-conviction, but typically it includes the loss of voting rights, firearm ownership, and jury service. There are several different variations on what happens after a felony conviction, depending on the state. Four states, Iowa, Florida, Virginia, and Kentucky have permanent disenfranchisement for everyone convicted of a felony, unless the government approves a restoration of rights to an individual, typically through a pardon.

Source

Additional Info:

The Constitution gives the president unique power to forgive individuals for federal offenses. While pardons do not wipe away convictions, they can restore a person's full rights to vote, possess firearms and obtain business licenses, as well as remove barriers to certain career opportunities and adoptions. For many applicants, a pardon is simply an opportunity for a fresh start.

Source

 

[Evil Eye]

So... why does your president have that power?

My guess would be, about 2/3.

Saving 1/3 of a few million people 5-10 years in prison would still be wordthwhile I think.