“Recently we’ve seen two presidential forums focused exclusively on the subject of criminal justice reform. The candidates for president are releasing detailed plans on how to address this critical issue. This is unprecedented. Finally, America’s broken criminal justice system and the urgent need for reform is front and center in our presidential campaign process, where it should have been for the past 30 years. Now that all eyes are on this issue, let’s make sure we don’t squander the opportunity.”
“Most Americans now agree that the United States must end its overuse of incarceration. But even with intensive reform efforts, the number of people in federal and state prisons has inched down only about 8 percent since its peak in 2009, and 2.1 million adults are still incarcerated — about four times pre-1980s levels. The financial cost of these ongoing, historically unique highs is a staggering $80 billion every year. The human cost — even worse — is incalculable.”