Lawmakers across the U.S. have considered legislation this year that would allow courts or parole boards to reevaluate a person’s long prison sentence and decide whether the inmate can be safely released into society.
The bills, known as “second look” legislation, often focus on older populations, people sentenced as minors, or those whose crimes might have had a mitigating factor such as self-defense against domestic violence.
As the prison population both ages and increases, the “second look” movement has gained interest as a way to reduce overcrowding and potentially save money. Both Republicans and Democrats have sponsored the bills, but some advocates and prosecutors say the laws could retraumatize crime victims and burden a strained court system, reports Stateline.
One second look bill, in Oklahoma, was signed this year. The new law requires judges to consider whether domestic violence was a mitigating factor in a crime. If so, a defendant would be eligible for a lighter sentence compared with the usual mandatory ranges.
“We showed that you can pass significant criminal justice reform inside a conservative state,” said Republican state Rep. Jon Echols, one of the bill’s sponsors. “I think we did a lot of good with the legislation we did, and I’m hoping more states follow.”
The Oklahoma law has a retroactive clause for current inmates. People who are now serving time can file a resentencing request once the law goes into effect.
Some advocates think second look legislation could draw bipartisan support because the measures aim to address prison overcrowding and overspending by releasing people who are least likely to reoffend.
“It can be a way to address excess spending,” said Liz Komar of The Sentencing Project. “We can reinvest scarce public safety dollars from being uselessly employed to keep people who are zero risk in prison to instead prevent crime in the community.”
At least 12 states already have second look measures in place. At least 17 states have abolished discretionary parole for all or most offenses, according to Campaign Zero, a nonprofit social justice organization. This means people convicted in those states will not receive a parole-eligible sentence.
Some prosecutors, victim rights groups and family members of crime victims have voiced concerns that victims and their families could be retraumatized by the resentencing process.
Commentaires