Mandatory Pre-Emptive Action For Trolls:
No, I am not in favor of gang activity or drug trafficking. I am against stripping decision-making authority from the people who know the most about the case- the judge who should determine the sentence.
This is another ‘fix’ that will do nothing to stop crime (presumably those being sentenced have all been arrested, charged, tried, and found guilty, but you just can’t be sure anymore), will waste enormous amounts of resources, and most certainly will end up imprisoning people who may not be innocent, but most certainly do not deserve to spend 15-20 years in jail because some idiots in Washington felt the need to ‘do something.’
This bill sounds so awful, it almost certainly will receive broad support from both ‘Law and Order’ Republicans and the timid Democrats who want to show they can be ‘tough on crime, too.’
ppgaz
Mandatory sentencing is just another assault on an independent judiciary.
It’s a way to strip courts of their power. It has little to do with “law and order” which used to be the battle cry. It has to do with “whose” order is in control.
Libertine
I hate mandatory minimums…
It is an intrusion by the Federal Government in matters that are best left to the states. But part of the problem is that so many criminal offenses have been classified as “Federal Offenses”. This allows the Feds to further intervene in state’s matters.
So much for the theory of a smaller, less intrusive Federal Government. And John is right the Dems who support this are spineless…too worried about their re-election then good law.
Stormy70
This bill sounds like crap. That is all.
Ben Regenspan
“…changes the definition of crime of violence to include drug trafficking crimes that involve no violence whatsoever”
Makes sense.
bago
Reefer Madness!
The Disenfrachised Voter
“…changes the definition of crime of violence to include drug trafficking crimes that involve no violence whatsoever”
That’s some straight up BS right there.