New ACLU memo paints rosy vision of “Harris on the Criminal Legal System”
In this post last month, I flagged (and threw some shade on) one of a series of “roadmap” documents ALCU has produced on various issues looking toward the next presidential administration. That document, titled “Trump on the Criminal Legal System,” painted a dark picture of the prospects of “Trump’s efforts to bring in a new wave of mass incarceration.” Now the ACLU has just released this parallel memo in this series, titled “Harris on the Criminal Legal System,” which contends a Harris Administration “could have a significantly positive impact on America’s justice system.” Here is how this 12-page document begins:
Democratic nominee Vice President Kamala Harris has comprehensive knowledge of the criminal justice system and a demonstrated record of a commitment to reform. While Harris may not be aligned with all of the ACLU’s positions on criminal law reform, there is nonetheless considerable overlap and synergy.
Before she was elected to the Senate, Harris served as an assistant district attorney and district attorney for the city of San Francisco, and as attorney general for the state of California. As a district attorney, Harris established a reentry program focused on removing barriers to housing, education, and employment. As an attorney general, she created an office to address the rights of children in the juvenile justice system. Later as a senator, Harris championed progressive legislation to address police transparency and accountability and to address disparities created by the war on drugs.
To be clear, Harris has a mixed record on criminal law reform. For instance, her position on the death penalty has shifted over time. As district attorney, she demonstrated fidelity to campaign promises when she declined to seek the death penalty. But, under her leadership as attorney general, her office defended the death penalty in California after a court found it to be unconstitutionally arbitrary. That said, Harris’ most recent work in the Senate to reform the criminal legal system is encouraging. If she continues this path, she could have a significantly positive impact on America’s justice system.
This year also marks the 30th anniversary of the 1994 Crime Bill, which presents Harris with an opportunity to renounce the failed policies that drove mass incarceration and to embrace reform to end racial disparities and move toward a more humane system for all. The ACLU will continue our advocacy for such meaningful reform. We will push the Harris administration to expand progressive reform efforts and challenge draconian approaches to criminal legal policy.
Prior related post: