State Sen. Scott Wiener announced new state legislation that would end mandatory jail sentences for people accused of nonviolent drug offenses.
Under the current law, judges are banned from sentencing first-time offenders of non-violent drug crimes to probation. Additionally, judges are also banned from sentencing someone to probation who has a prior drug offense and has been convicted of a second offense like personal drug possession, Wiener said.
Senate Bill 378, however, would repeal that law and give judges more discretion, allowing them to sentence those convicted of such offenses to probation and rehabilitative programs instead of jail time, if and when appropriate.
According to Wiener, the laws establishing mandatory minimum sentences for non-violent drug offense were established in the 1980s — during the country’s War on Drugs — and resulted in overcrowded prisons, full of mostly low-income people and people of color.
“We have seen the damage that this mass incarceration in California has caused; tearing communities apart and tearing families apart, making it harder and harder to rehabilitate people and reintegrate people into society,” Wiener said during an online news conference Monday.
Previous versions of the bill have been introduced several times in the past years by Assemblywoman Wendy Carrillo, D-Los Angeles, and Sen. Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley. The two have coauthored the bill’s latest version along with Wiener.
Although the bill has been in the works for years, Wiener said with COVID-19 spreading through the state’s prisons, the time to push SB 378 forward is now.
“We’re seeing the spread around our prison system and it shows once more the huge downside of overincarcerating,” he said.
“Judges are actually forced to incarcerate people who would better be treated and supervised in their own communities under probation,” Carrillo said. “Mass incarceration impacts families across our state and consumes
billions of dollars that California should be investing in schools, infrastructure, health care, mental health and rehabilitation programs. Now over overcrowding and inadequate access to medical care has left correctional facilities across our state particularly vulnerable and defenseless against COVID-19.”
“Mandatory minimums have for far too long disproportionately impacted people of color and our working community,” San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin said. “It is high time that we recognize that these
mandatory minimums and the power that they implicate for district attorneys has been abused. It’s led to spiraling incarceration. It’s led to disproportionate sentencing for people of color and meanwhile the war on drugs continues to cost the U.S. over $47 billion a year, even though we know it is a failure.”
“This is clearly a step in the right direction,” San Francisco Public Defender Mano Raju said. “This is expensive injustice. And the racial disparities because of where law enforcement is choosing to devote their resources are startling.”
What happened with “do the crime, do the time”?
Yeah, yeah, non-violent drug offence and they will be on probation. How many of these crooks will have their crime pleaded down to non-violent so they can take ADVANTAGE of this? And disproportionately impacted people of color .. really? We are STUCK on that noise …
Now this question will come out wrong, but I honestly would like to know. How many felons on probation commit additional crimes while on probation? What is the percentage? I think that would be a critical piece of data that should be considered in this case.
“Parent” asks the rate of recidivism for felons on probation. This as well as recidivism rates for misdemeanors and Juveniles can be obtained for the asking by calling the Contra Costa County Probation Dept. (administration) or the county where you live. These numbers are needed for budgeting purposes as well as for justifying grants. Never be afraid to inquire about how your government is operating. YOU ARE THE GOVERNMENT, you have a duty to make it good.
So, what’s considered nonviolent? How about giving heroin to elementary school kids? Is that nonviolent? Should somebody who does that be out on probation?
Why does every bill this guy introduces aim to hep criminals avoid punishment?
I agree parent they try to memory hole things like that and scrub that information and act like it doesn’t exist or is relevant. Common sense isn’t so common anymore
They are taking up all the prisons. Way too expensive. Housing them and not addressing their addictions will not solve their problems. I think if the money spent went towards their rehabilitation would be more profitable and better.
Drug dealers aren’t addicts – they create them, simpleton.
The fine print of this bill will defund monies to your local police department. Snakes! This whole bunch are a bunch of snakes in the grass! Stop voting these career politicians in!
Oh Popcorn………Still living in your dream world! Most addicts do not want help for their addictions! This is why people choose to live on the streets when there are shelters available!
As I’ve said many times before, your opinions would change if you or someone you care about is robbed, beaten, or otherwise victimized by these people. Releasing criminals back onto our streets INCREASES crime rates
You can’t reason with people like this.
Criminals go to jail, and criminals are the ones who decide the percentages of a given race in the prison population. These guys don’t want law breakers to be accountable for their own behavior. He and Skinner blame the citizens.
I used to think this made sense, but sometimes a ‘non-violent’ offender is not so non-violent. The infamous gangster Al Capone was a ‘non-violent’ offender. He went to prison for Tax Evasion. This is an extreme example, but the point is ‘non-violent’ criminals likely commit crimes or make other bad decisions that impact society leading up to an arrest for a minor crime that can be proven.
again with this
the intention is to give more power to who
yep democratic judges so they can install the marxist judical justice
if your a minority or a democrat statistic case comes to them they can just let them walk
if a non compliant non democrat is in the court the judge can throw the book at them ….
once you let the weiners of this country dictate judicial charges
you lose
dont fall for the national socialist approach to our judicial system
stop democrats trying to take away laws and install the ones that make them more powerful
this guy is a joke ….i can not believe he is allowed to make our system of elected officials look so bad and pandering to a political side so much as to instill a mockery through bad legislature ….
now wonder they are afraid of trump he is the only one able to stop them
i am independent but can easily see the dem politicians push to own people and allow their people to rule unconditionally with prejudice and fear
You lost me at Wiener. Not interested in anything he introduces or co-authors.
Right with you!
I have no problem with giving judges greater discretion in sentencing. One-size-fits-all rules from a greatly removed legislature are not justice. Unfortunately I have so little faith in the California justice system, I suspect that the type of personel that make it to judge and DA positions in this state will just abuse that discretion to further whatever the left’s ideas of social justice are at the time.
The statement on disparate impact of minorities gives it away. The left operates on the rule that all unequal outcomes are due to bigotry, systemic racism, misogyny, etc. You are not allowed to notice that some ethnic groups commit more crimes, that women tend to flock to some fields and not others, etc. The only acceptable way to address those disparities on the left is to cook the books, and manipulate the outcomes. This is why the state legislature just voted to approve the repeal of the Californa Equal Rights amendment. If a free society does not provide the equal outcomes they demand, they will remove that freedom and dictate the outcomes. It’s what all the pushes to implement “Diversity Inclusion Equity” zampolits into all organizations, public and private, is about. If they have to hold one group down to raise another, that is considered justice.
Look for this law to be used to “address” racial disparities in conviction and imprisonment. I promise you that is the ulterior motive.
I hope I am wrong, and it is used only to fairly and impartially dispense justice. But one only needs to look to the colleges that are producing the people who man the system to be disabused of that hope.
I’ve had enough of this idiot and all these go soft on crime politicians. We are the ones paying the price for there ignorance. This does not affect them at all except at maybe the poles. So let’s make it affect them and vote out all of these liberal democrats and see if we can reclaim California and save it. People are responsible for there actions if it’s against the law then pay the price and quit gong soft on them. We are spiraling towards the drain if we don’t stop this madness completely
Too bad he can’t see the damage he and his fellow idiots in Sacramento have done and continue to do to California. It used to be a decent place to live many years ago, but not anymore. Part time legislators are a start to a reform.
Another good reason for out of state drug bums to move to California.
A Big “Gee Thanks!” to SS Wiener!
I believe Wiener is a weener.
This bill reinforces my belief.
Good. That authority should never have been taken from judges in the first place.
this guy cant even rub 2 sticks together
he gets his orders from pelosi
just like all the other reps
yep even newscum
and de slacker march to her drum
its sad really because they appear to be one thing and then say what she wants
i never understood dem politicians using the people to make themselves rich
they manipulate the easy targets like grifters do
smile and talk nice and get you to do what ever they want
any dem voter want to chime in and explain why you follow people who use you ….like dem politicians and dem mayors and dem boards and dem hoa’s
in 40 years this state abandoned the peoples rights and started taking from them
creating chaos where there was none …
creating divide
creating collusion and corruption and sanctuary all to put money IN their pockets ….dem voters followed believing in the utopia they promised
now they riot and burn and attack ….
ask a dem what they think ….they flip you off
because they cant answer they flip you off ….
its unbelievable how this state got turned into a pro riot and anti fed approved
maybe a dem would like to capitulate
Another “gut and amend’ bill by Mt Weiner and his cohorts. Time is running out in the Legislstive calendar.
Honestly, has this guy ever proposed anything that isn’t moronic and contrarian to basic common sense? He was horrible in San Francisco and following the Newsom playbook, he took his crazy ideas to the state.
What’s the definition of a non-violent drug offense? Is it someone found with possession of illegal drugs or someone under the influence of illegal drugs? If so, then maybe this is a step towards legalizing drugs??
Using or possessing.
Please note that alcohol kills 88,000 people nationally a year, tobacco almost 15,000. These are legal drugs which do great harm, far more than certain federally illegal drugs like cannabis.
The description is very deceiving. There are very very few circumstances where a judge cannot grant probation to a 1st, 2d, or even 10th time drug offender. The second paragraph is downright untrue.
This is the guy who made it a misdemeanor to knowingly and maliciously spread HIV and AIDS to people.
I think I agree with you. I am tired of people taking down statues and people destroying property and stealing stuff. My question is why do they get away with it? So sick of the lies too.
Popcorn:
Please decide what side of the argument you are on! You just posted this above:
“They are taking up all the prisons. Way too expensive. Housing them and not addressing their addictions will not solve their problems. I think if the money spent went towards their rehabilitation would be more profitable and better.” And now you’re asking “why do they get away with it?”
If you re-read your post above, you will have the answer. They get away with it because bleeding heart liberals push to release our criminals back onto the streets and that’s what is happening. Many of these people are career criminals. They get away with it in California because there are no penalties.
YOU CAN’T HAVE IT BOTH WAYS!
The Democrats can only pander to the mob these days as they don’t have any kind of platform other than they will do ANYTHING to get your vote.
@ Sign from above.
A wise man once asked me, “what is the difference between a liberal and a conservative”. The answer was; “a liberal has not been mugged yet”.
So true.
Recall: Pelosi, Barbara Lee, Weiner, Eshoo, Smalwell(sic), DeSaulnier, Skinner, Maxine Waterst al!!
Boxer saw this trash coming and retired but I would not be surprised that she may be behind the scenes somewhere!
PEOPLE OF COLOR (??!!!) — what a joke – the only people of color here are blacks and miscreant whites!
zha Wiener strikes again
Those who commit crimes should know up front the mandatory sentence they will face.
Wiener is a nut job who should be concerned more about the victims.
I’m very concerned about any office holder that’s soft on crime. The police are being neutered by liberals.
A conservative is a liberal who has been mugged!