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Bill introduced to overturn USSC’s crack retroactivity decision

By Douglas Berman

As detailed in this press release from House member Lamar Smith, there is now officially a bill in Congress to overturn the US Sentencing Commission’s decision to make its new crack guidelines retroactive.  Here are excerpts from the press release:

Ranking Member Lamar Smith (R-TX) [has] introduced legislation to protect American communities from convicted crack offenders.  This bill ensures that an estimated 20,000 criminals will not be released before serving their full prison sentence.

“The American people have the right to know that their homes and communities are safe from dangerous criminals and convicted crack cocaine traffickers,” stated Ranking Member Smith.  “The decision by the U.S. Sentencing Commission to apply lowered penalties for crack cocaine offenders retroactively undermines the efforts of law enforcement officials across the nation and raises serious public safety concerns.”…

“To protect the American people and combat the dangerous drug trade, we must ensure that convicted criminals remain behind bars,” concluded Smith. “This bill keeps communities safe from crack cocaine offenders by prohibiting the early release of 20,000 criminals.”

Additional members of the House Judiciary Committee joining Ranking Member Smith in sponsoring this bill include Crime Subcommittee Ranking Member Louie Gohmert (R-TX), Representatives Steve Chabot (R-OH), Howard Coble (R-NC), J. Randy Forbes (R-VA), Trent Franks (R-AZ), Elton Gallegly (R-CA), Jim Jordan (R-OH) and F. James Sensenbrenner, Jr. (R-WI).

As the press release highlights, the only supporters of this bill as of this writing are Republicans.  Indeed, with Democrats now controlling both houses of Congress, I doubt that this bill will get passed.  However, one notable Democratic Senator, Hillary Clinton, has expressed her opposition to making the new crack guidelines retroactive.  So, this bill already has the tacit support of at least one prominent Democratic Senator.  It will be interesting to see if she or someone else proposes a similar bill in the Senate and also whether this bill ever gets a hearing or serious traction in the legislative process.  Stay tuned.

Here is an abridged account of some of my prior blog coverage on this issue and its politics: