FAMM Calls House Passage of Synthetic Drug Bill a Step in Wrong Direction

For Immediate Release
Date: December 8, 2011
Contact: Monica Pratt Raffanel, media@famm.org

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Families Against Mandatory Minimums (FAMM) President Julie Stewart today expressed disappointment after the U.S. House of Representatives voted to approve H.R. 1254, legislation that adds 41 new synthetic drugs to the Controlled Substances Act. The bill, if enacted, would expand mandatory minimum sentences.

“No matter how much evidence piles up proving that mandatory minimum sentences are harsh, discriminatory and ineffective, many in Congress unfortunately still trot them out to show they are tough on crime,” said Ms. Stewart. “In this case, we know the mandatory penalty will not accomplish what the sponsors intend. The Congressional Budget Office concluded this bill would be nearly obsolete by the time it passes because vendors of these synthetic drugs will simply replace them with new chemicals,” said Stewart.

In a letter to members of the House Judiciary Committee sent in October, FAMM argued that mandatory minimum sentencing laws have proven ineffective in the war against drug trafficking and that expanding the reach of mandatory sentences was a step in the wrong direction. Just last month, the U.S. Sentencing Commission substantiated these concerns and in a comprehensive new report concluded that “certain mandatory minimum provisions apply too broadly, are set too high, or both, to warrant the prescribed minimum penalty for the full range of offenders who could be prosecuted.”

Stewart said FAMM and like-minded reform groups will now turn their attention to the U.S. Senate. “We know there are senators who are concerned about the proliferation of mandatory minimum sentences. Some want to reverse the growing federalization of crime, and others are questioning the cost-efficiency of locking up individuals convicted of nonviolent offenses and throwing away the key. We are calling on these senators to put the brakes on this unnecessary bill.”
 
FAMM is a national nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that supports fair and proportionate sentencing laws that allow judicial discretion while maintaining public safety.

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