Review the following actions, statements and releases from policymakers and organizations advocating for more fair sentencing. Demand Attorney General Jeff Sessions rescind the DOJ’s May 10, 2017 guidance to federal prosecutors. Encourage him to work towards fairer sentencing and drug policies. Join the resistance, circulate these resources and take action. Bookmark this page for updates and calls for action.
BACKGROUND
On March 31, 2017 the Justice Roundtable Coalition sent a letter to Attorney General Sessions Urging Preservation of the Department of Justice’s Smart on Crime Guidance and Related Policies. This request was ignored and on May 10 AG Sessions issued a Memo to Federal Prosecutors that will escalate the destructive war on drugs, exacerbate racial disparities, soar the prison population, and increase costs to taxpayers.
PETITION: Sessions: Rescind Your Draconian Memo
PETITION: Don’t Escalate the Failed War on Drugs
ATTORNEY GENERAL SESSIONS’ May 10, 2017 MEMO TO FEDERAL PROSECUTORS
- Department of Justice memorandum: Attorney General Sessions Issues Charging and Sentencing Guidelines to Federal Prosecutors (May 10, 2017)
CONGRESSIONAL STATEMENTS OPPOSING THE SESSIONS MEMO
- Sen. Dick Durbin statement: Durbin Statement on AG Session Move to Force Needlessly Harsh Prison Sentences for Nonviolent Drug Offenses (May 12, 2017)
- Sen. Rand Paul statement: Dr. Rand Paul Releases Statement on Attorney General’s Action on Mandatory Minimums (May 12, 2017)
- Congressional Black Caucus: CBC Chairman Statement on Sessions Guidance to Federal Prosecutors (May 12, 2017)
ORGANIZATIONAL STATEMENTS OPPOSING THE SESSIONS MEMO
- Justice Roundtable statement: Justice Roundtable Coalition Condemns Attorney General Sessions’ New Charging Policy that will Escalate “The War on Drugs” (May 12, 2017)
- Open Letter from Former State and Local Prosecutors (May 18, 2017)
- Government of the District of Columbia release: Attorney General Racine and Counterparts Urge Department of Justice to Rescind Harsh New Sentencing Guidelines
- Drug Policy Alliance release: Attorney General Sessions Escalates Drug War and Tells Prosecutors to Seek “Most Serious” Charges, More Severe Sentences for Drugs: Disastrous Move will Increase Prison Population, Exacerbate Racial Disparities and do Nothing to Reduce Drug Use (May 12, 2017)
- The Sentencing Project release: The Sentencing Project Condemns DOJ’s Return to Harsh Enforcement of Low-level Drug Crimes (May 12, 2017)
- Project New Opportunity statement: Sessions memorandum decried by those who best know best what it means (May 12, 2017)
- Center for American Progress statement: Attorney General Sessions Brings Back Outdated Justice Department Prosecutorial Policies that Exacerbated Mass Incarceration, Says CAP’s Ed Chung (May 12, 2017)
- LDF statement: NAACP-LDF Statement on Attorney General Sessions Charging and Sentencing Directive (May 12, 2017)
- NAACP release: DOJ Reversal on Drug Prosecutions Will Fuel Mass Incarceration and Undermine Public Safety (May 12, 2017)
- NACDL release: U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions Issues Retrograde Charging Policy; Seeks Return to 20th Century’s So-Called ‘War on Drugs’ and the Age of Mass Incarceration (May 12, 2017)
- Koch Network statement: “We favor a different approach which requires changing some of the existing federal laws,” said Mark Holden, a top Koch network official who worked closely with the Obama administration on criminal justice reform. “There are less costly and more effective ways to help low level offenders who aren’t a threat to public safety other than incarceration.” (May 12, 2017)
- Families Against Mandatory Minimums (FAMM) statement of DOJ Charging (May 12, 2017)
- African American Mayors Association Statement: U.S. Department of Justice Policy to Seek More Serious Charges and Harsher Sentences (May 12, 2017):
- National Action Network statement: Statement from National Action Network Calls Sessions’ Criminal Charging and Sentencing Policy is a Threat to Us All (May 12, 2017)
- Justice Roundtable Coalition letter to AG Sessions: Coalition Letter Urges Preservation of Department of Justice Smart on Crime Guidance, Related Policies (March 31, 2017)
LAW ENFORCEMENT STATEMENTS EXPRESSING CONCERN
- Law Enforcement Leaders (LEL) to Reduce Crime and Incarceration statement: Prosecutors & Police: Justice Department Misguided to Focus on Drug Crimes (May 9, 2017)
NEWS CLIPS ON THE SESSIONS MEMO, ET AL.
- GOP’s Amash: Sessions’s call for tougher sentences ‘unjust’, The Hill (May 12, 2017)
- ‘Dumb on Crime’: Fmr AG Eric Holder Slams Jeff Sessions’ New Prosecution Policy, Law News (May 12, 2017)
- AG Sessions to Toughen Rules on Prosecuting Criminal Drug Cases, NBC Nightly News (May 12. 2017)
- Sessions issues sweeping new criminal charging policy, Washington Post (May 12, 2017)
Koch network opposes Sessions restart of War on Drugs, Axios (May 12 2017) - Sessions Tells Prosecutors To Seek ‘Most Serious’ Charges, Stricter Sentences, NPR (May 12, 2017)
- AG Sessions Paves Way for Stricter Sentencing in Criminal Cases, CNN (May 12, 2017)
- Attorney General Tells Prosecutors to Seek ‘Most Serious’ Charges in Drug Cases TIME (May 12, 2017)
- Prosecutors are pushing back against Sessions order to pursue most severe penalties Washington Post (May 19, 2017)
- Trump should reject Sessions’ stance on sentencing reform Real Clear Politics (June 28, 2017)
- What Sessions Doesn’t Get: Narcotics Trafficking Is A Market Forbes (June 29)
- Attorney General Jeff Sessions Delivers Remarks at the 30th DARE Training Conference (July 11)
- House Judiciary Committee Approves Bill that Gives Attorney General Sessions Unchecked Power to Ban New Drugs and Set Criminal Penalties (July 12)
- Attorney General Jeff Sessions is preparing to ramp up asset forfeiture (July 18)
- Jeff Sessions misguided marijuana crackdown-commentary (July 18)
- Forget Russia. I’d fire Jeff Sessions over civil forfeiture (July 24)
- Kushner’s Interest in Drug-Sentencing Limits Is at Odds With Attorney General (July 26)
- Jeff Sessions isn’t bringing back the war on drugs. That’s because it never ended (August 2)
- Jeff Sessions Is Taking Law Enforcement Back to the 1980s (August 4)
- Jeff Sessions Scuttles Forensics Partnership With Scientists (August 7)
- Sessions Promotes Tough-On-Crime Judge for Sentencing Panel (August 10)
- Prosecuting Domestic Terrorism as Terrorism (August 18)
- Jeff Sessions is Trump’s MVP in the aftermath of Charlottesville (August 18)
- Trump asked Sessions about closing case against Arpaio, an ally since ‘birtherism’ (August 26, 2017)
- ‘We don’t have a sentencing problem’ AG Jeff Sessions tells Oklahoma sheriffs in a rebuke of state reforms (October 17 2017)
- Attorney General Sessions Delivers Remarks to the International Association of Chiefs of Police (October 23, 2017)
- Jeff Sessions Used His Emergency Scheduling Powers Last Week. Here’s What That Means. (November 13, 2017)
- Jeff Sessions is walking away from the best way to reduce police shootings (December 18, 2017)
- Attorney General Jeff Sessions Rescinds 25 Guidance Documents (December 21, 2017)
- Sessions Revokes Law Enforcement Guidance On Fining Poor Defendants (December 24, 2017)
- DOJ Rescinds Directive Against Excessive Court Fines To Poor People (December 26, 2017)
CONTINUING IN 2018 …
- US to end policy that let legal pot flourish (January 4, 2018)
- Sessions rescinds policy that allowed legal pot to flourish (January 4, 2018)
- Grassley ‘incensed’ by Sessions ‘ criticism of proposed sentencing reform legislation (February 14, 2018)
- Exclusive: Here’s Jeff Sessions’ Draft Master Plan For The Justice Department Exclusive: Here’s Jeff Sessions’ Draft Master Plan For The Justice Department (March 8, 2018)
OTHER
- DEA360 remarks: Attorney General Jeff Sessions Delivers Remarks at DEA360 Heroin and Opioid Response Summit on (May 11, 2017)
ARCHIVES
EMERGENCY RALLY – STOP SESSIONS AND THE NEW DRUG WAR – Tuesday, May 16, at noon. In front of U.S. Department of Justice, 950 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC. See flyer, click to download and share on social media using #StopSessions and #NoMoreDrugWar. Visit and share the Rally’s Facebook Page and let us know if you are attending.
SUGGESTED SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS:
#StopSessions. Demand #JeffSessions not bring back the #warondrugs.
#NoMoreDrugWar bitly.com/NoMoreStop
Noon rally in #WashingtonDC at @thejusticedept to tell #StopSessions from bringing back #warondrugs. #NoMoreDrugWar
I’m going to help #StopSessions on Tues. May 16 at the DOJ. Rally with me for #NoMoreDrugWar