Too Many Non Violent Americans Are In Jail

The following 10 points were provided by Senator Jim Webb who is doing his best to put this very important subject on the radar. Millions of Americans lives are being ruined because either they are a family member is in jail unjustly. We are supposed to be the “land of the free” so are we putting so many of our non violent citizens in jail?

FACTS:

1. The United States has by far the world’s highest incarceration rate. With five percent of the world’s population, our country now houses twenty-five percent of the world’s reported prisoners!

2. More than 2.38 million Americans are now in prison, and another 5 million remain on probation or parole.

3. Our prison population has skyrocketed over the past two decades as we have incarcerated more people for non-violent crimes and acts driven by mental illness or drug dependence.

4. Four times as many mentally ill people are in prisons than in mental health hospitals.

5. The costs to our federal, state, and local governments of keeping repeat offenders in the criminal justice system continue to grow during a time of increasingly tight budgets.

6. Existing practices too often incarcerate people who do not belong in prison and distract from locking up the more serious, violent offenders who are a threat to our communities.

7. Transnational criminal activity, much of it directed by violent gangs and cartels from Latin America, Asia and Europe, has permeated the country. Mexican cartels alone now operate in more than 230 communities across the country.

8. Mass incarceration of illegal drug users has not curtailed drug usage. The multi-billion dollar illegal drugs industry remains intact, with more dangerous drugs continuing to reach our streets. Incarcerated drug offenders have soared 1200% since 1980.

9. Incarceration for drug crimes has had a disproportionate impact on minority communities, despite virtually identical levels of drug use across racial and ethnic lines.

10. Post-incarceration re-entry programs are haphazard and often nonexistent, undermining public safety and making it extremely difficult for ex-offenders to become full, contributing members of society.

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One thing that would clearly help this problem is to legalize marijuana. Many Americans are in jail for marijuana related “crimes” which is absurd considering the drug is far less dangerous than legal substances such as cigarettes & alcohol.

Drug use should not be a legal matter. If the government wants to get involved in such an issue, it should do so as a matter of health (although it should be pointed out there is little to no evidence that marijuana causes any significant health problems.)

It is simply wrong for non violent people who have done nothing to hurt anyone to be put in jail. History will not look back kindly on marijuana prohibition or those who did nothing to end it.

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Related story: Barney Frank files bill to decriminalize marijuana.