Sentencing-Reform

Federal Three Strikes Law Mandates Life Imprisonment for Third Violent Felony

1994-09-13 00:00:00 +0000 UTC | Importance: 8/10

The Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 includes a federal “three strikes” provision mandating life imprisonment without possibility of parole for individuals convicted of a third violent felony or serious drug offense. Specifically, the law requires mandatory life …

Bill Clinton Joe Biden Congress mass-incarceration criminal-justice mandatory-minimums sentencing-reform legislation

Anti-Drug Abuse Act Establishes 100-to-1 Crack-Cocaine Sentencing Disparity

1986-10-27 00:00:00 +0000 UTC | Importance: 9/10

Congress passes the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986, establishing a 100-to-1 sentencing disparity between crack cocaine and powder cocaine offenses—imposing the same penalties for possession of 5 grams of crack cocaine as for 500 grams of powder cocaine. The legislation provided mandatory minimum …

Ronald Reagan Congress mass-incarceration racial-justice war-on-drugs criminal-justice sentencing-reform +1 more