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The First Step Act’s Impact On Criminal Justice

Crime and Justice News

In June 2024, the Department of Justice released its fourth annual report assessing the impact and effectiveness of the First Step Act of 2018. The landmark legislation aimed to mitigate the harsh sentencing practices that fueled the mass incarceration crisis in the United States, as well as introduce critical reforms to improve conditions within federal prisons, the Brennan Center reports. Supported by a bipartisan slate of federal lawmakers, the First Step Act represented not just a legislative achievement but a systemic shift toward a belief in second chances. After passage, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) said the law would “begin to relieve our overcrowded prisons, redirect funding to our most pressing crime prevention efforts, make our communities safer, and ensure the integrity of our justice system.” How has the legislation fared in achieving its intended goals? While it has made significant progress in the six years since it was enacted, its effectiveness has been somewhat limited by ongoing legal debates about how it should be applied.


The First Step Act includes key sentencing reforms aimed at reducing lengthy and disproportionate sentences for nonviolent drug offenses while establishing incentives for rehabilitative programming in federal prisons. The First Step Act’s prison reforms aimed to expand options for meaningful programming and rehabilitation in federal prisons. The legislation provided funding to enhance evidence-based programs in federal prisons, such as drug treatment, vocational training, and literacy skill development. These programs target identified needs, and evaluations have shown them to reduce or likely reduce recidivism. The law’s sentencing reforms have already had a substantial impact. As of January 2024, over 4,000 people had their sentences reduced due to the First Step Act’s retroactive application of the Fair Sentencing Act. The expansion of judicial discretion in certain drug cases affected approximately 1,400 people within a year of its enactment. Changes to compassionate release also allowed for the release of more than 2,600 people during the Covid-19 pandemic.

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A daily report co-sponsored by Arizona State University, Criminal Justice Journalists, and the National Criminal Justice Association

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