When Everything Is a Crime: Harvey Silverglate on the Overregulation of Ordinary Life
"That's what causes change: the people in power begin to get hurt by their own system."
Sentencing
Louisiana Inmates Serving Unconstitutional Sentences Will Have to Keep Waiting for Relief
Louisiana state Sen. Karen Carter Peterson just blocked a bill that would have provided relief to those sentenced as children to life without parole.
Opioid Panic Infects Defense Spending Bill
New Hampshire senator wants to increase federal penalties.
Weldon Angelos Is Free, Thanks to a Prosecutor, Not a President
The young father of three got 55 years for three small-time pot sales.
White House Announces 42 New Commutations
Total for administration reaches 348, but hundreds more may still qualify.
Maryland Reforms Asset Forfeiture, Mandatory Minimums
Tighter rules on seizure and looser rules on sentences for nonviolent crimes.
Very Few Prisoners Seeking Commutations Meet DOJ's Picky Criteria for Consideration
Only 4 percent of cases reviewed by volunteer lawyers have made the cut so far.
Here's What to Expect from the Latest Attempt at Federal Sentencing Reform
Bipartisan bill was amended in April. Who would be affected?
Obama Could Have Achieved a Nixonian Level of Mercy If He Had Wasted Less Time
Nixon's commutation rate was more than four times as high.
Obama Announces New Round of Commutations
The deadline is rapidly approaching for federal prisoners to request mercy.
Prince's Death Being Used to Sell Painkiller Panic
Is there any way to stop the abuse of the word 'epidemic'?
'Serial Child Molester' Dennis Hastert Gets 15 Months for Something That Shouldn't Be Illegal
The former speaker of the House can no longer be prosecuted for his real crimes.
Supreme Court Makes Important Mandatory Minimum Ruling Retroactive
Some in federal prison may see sentence reductions.
'Keep in mind Hillary Clinton ran against Barack Obama's sentencing reform in 2008'
Matt Welch talks about the 'ugliness' of Clintonian crime politics on Rev. Al Sharpton's PoliticsNation
76-Year-Old Asks SCOTUS to Overturn Life Sentence for 37 Pot Plants
Lee Carroll Brooker, a victim of Alabama's habitual offender law, argues that his punishment violates the Eighth Amendment.
Bill Clinton's Shameful Crime Politics: Watch Matt Welch Talk to Al Sharpton Sunday at 8 a.m. ET
MSNBC's PoliticsNation will feature some blunt talk about New York politics
Sanders Misleadingly Connects 'Mass Incarceration' to Pot Busts
Clinton minimizes her role in advocating longer sentences and exaggerates her role in trying to shorten them.
Hillary Clinton's Overdue Shift on Crime
She acknowledges harsher penalties implemented in the '90s were a mistake.
Bill Clinton Claims His Wife 'Was the First Candidate' to Talk About Sentencing Reform
It's true, if you don't count Rand Paul, Ted Cruz, Rick Perry, or Jim Webb
Bill Clinton's Crime Bill Ambivalence
The former president can't decide whether he should brag about the 1994 law or apologize for it.
Bill Clinton's Mendacious Defense of the 1994 Crime Bill
The former president says Republicans made him support longer sentences, which were a necessary response to 13-year-old murderers "hopped up on crack."
Almost Everybody Wants Federal Sentencing Reform, So Why Hasn't It Happened?
Election year posturing and new Supreme Court nominee fight push it down the agenda.
Obama's Mercy Still Pales Next to Richard Nixon's
Obama has granted about 1 percent of commutation petitions, compared to Nixon's 7 percent.
The Felony-Murder Rule Sends Non-Killers to Prison and Doesn't Even Reduce Crime
These flawed laws need to be reformed.
On Commutations, DOJ Blames Volunteer Lawyers for Failing to Do Its Job
A big backlog of prisoners seeking shorter sentences has gotten a lot bigger.
A 10-Year Mandatory Minimum Hinges on the Inartful Placement of Five Words
The law of the last antecedent beats the law of lenity.
Eric Holder's Views on Sentencing Evolved More Slowly Than He Remembers
The former attorney general supported mandatory minimums for drug offenses as a federal prosecutor in the 1990s.
The Media Narrative Around Drug Use Is Shifting, But the Harsh Policies for Drug Crimes Are Not
A "new face of heroin" is changing the discourse on drug addicts in the media. But has it translated into more humane public policy? Not quite.
On Criminal Justice Reform, Clinton Is Sanders Lite
Clinton, who was for mass incarceration before she was against it, fills in some blanks in her agenda.
Don't Punish All Drug Offenders for the Crimes of One
Opponents of sentencing reform say a triple murder in Columbus means drug war prisoners must remain behind bars.
Judge Who Sentenced Small-Time Pot Dealer to 55 Years Again Urges Clemency
If Obama means what he says about unjust punishment, he will free Weldon Angelos.
Opponents of Sentencing Reform Recklessly Conflate Drug Offenders With Murderers
Because some drug offenders are violent, four senators argue, all of them should stay behind bars.
What Rand Paul Brought to the Presidential Race
The Kentucky senator encouraged his fellow Republicans to be more consistently skeptical of big government.
The Fiction That Drug Trafficking Is 'Inherently Violent' Could Harm Sentencing Reform
Watered down improvements to federal mandatory minimums may get watered down further.
For Looking at Child Porn, a Judge Imposes a Sentence of Days Rather Than Years
Jack Weinstein concludes that the penalty recommended by federal sentencing guidelines is far too severe.
How Ted Cruz Turned His Back on Drug War Prisoners
The Texas senator, once a leading Republican advocate of sentencing reform, seems to have abandoned the cause.
Ted Cruz Abandons Criminal Justice Reform on His Way to the White House
The Texas senator, once a leading Republican critic of disproportionate punishment, seems to have switched sides.
Ted Cruz and Chuck Grassley Switch Places on Sentencing Reform
Why is Cruz, a critic of disproportionate penalties, trying to sink the bill with the best chance of passing?
Republicans Try to Torpedo Sentencing Reform
Need another reason to resent the GOP-run Congress? Try Tom Cotton (and Ted Cruz).
Is the Kochs' Support for Criminal Justice Reform a P.R. Move?
Jane Mayer implies their interest in the issue is new while conceding it is not.
Two Ranchers, Two Fires, Too Long Behind Bars
The resentencing of Dwight and Steven Hammond illustrates the injustices wrought by mandatory minimums.
Oregon Rancher Protest Highlights the Injustice of Mandatory Minimums
The Hammond case illustrates how federal law forces judges to impose sentences they consider grossly disproportionate.
The Absurdly Harsh Penalties That Sparked the Oregon Rancher Protest
A federal judge rejected mandatory minimums for Dwight and Steven Hammond as unconstitutional; an appeals court disagreed.
Obama Frees Sharanda Jones and 94 Other Prisoners Serving Draconian Sentences
Obama's commutation record looks good in absolute numbers but paltry as a percentage of petitions.
Don't Be Afraid of Those 6,000 Felons Just Released From Prison
Families Against Mandatory Minimum's Kevin Ring makes the case for even more wide-ranging and far-reaching sentencing reform.
