O'Malley's criminal justice plan: Abolish death penalty, reclassify marijuana

[still_one]

Miami (CNN)Martin O'Malley on Friday unveiled his proposals for overhauling the nation's criminal justice system, vowing to reform police departments, abolish the death penalty and address overcrowding in prisons.

"America's criminal justice system is badly in need of reform. For too long, our justice system has reinforced our country's cruel history of racism and economic inequality," O'Malley, the former Maryland governor, wrote in a detailed policy paper.

If elected, O'Malley also vowed to restore felons' voting rights and downgrade marijuana's Drug Enforcement Agency schedule, which currently classifies the drug among such substances as heroin and ecstasy.

"All those who served time and re-entered society should be allowed to vote," according to the white paper. "O'Malley will call for and strongly support legislation restoring voting rights to individuals with felony record."

http://www.cnn.com/2015/07/31/politics/martin-omalley-criminal-justice-reform/index.html

[elleng]

1. What they're saying about Martin O'Malley +criminal justice reform:

Martin O'Malley Just Unveiled His Sweeping Plan for Criminal Justice Reform.

Democratic presidential hopeful Martin O'Malley unveiled Friday a wide-ranging collection of policy proposals calling for comprehensive reform of the U.S. criminal justice system.

From less aggressive policing to smoother prisoner re-entry into society, the ideas presented in his policy paper constitute a pitch for a wholly more progressive paradigm for crime and punishment in the United States.

Invoking the campaign talking point "there is no such thing as a spare American," the former Maryland governor's proposal describes how "for too long our justice system has reinforced our country's cruel history of racism and economic inequality." O'Malley argues that making amends for this history requires an extensive reappraisal of norms in criminal law and policy.

http://mic.com/articles/123237/martin-o-malley-just-unveiled-his-sweeping-plan-for-criminal-justice-reform

Martin O'Malley Aims To Set The Bar On Criminal Justice With Comprehensive Reform Plan.

The proposal is the most detailed offering by any candidate so far.

Democratic presidential candidate Martin O'Malley on Friday released a sweeping plan to reform the U.S. criminal justice system, a move that could set the bar for candidates from both parties as they seek to stake a claim on the issue.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/martin-omalley-criminal-justice_55bba105e4b0d4f33a02913e

Martin O'Malley proposes feds get involved with policing.

Former Maryland governor once pushed zero-tolerance policing.

http://www.wbaltv.com/politics/martin-omalley-proposes-feds-get-involved-with-policing/34471996

National Urban League: Martin O'Malley

Democrat Martin O'Malley, the former Maryland governor and Baltimore mayor, tried to address criminal-justice reform two weeks ago to the liberal Netroots Nation conference. But he effectively got heckled off stage by "Black lives matter" protesters -- and later had to apologize for responding to them that "All lives matter." Needless to say, he was unable to make his points that day.

So he made them Friday to the National Urban League's annual conference in Fort Lauderdale, where he was allowed to get through his speech and was met with applause, though it was not particularly warm. And he made sure the group knew he had learned his lesson:

As mayor, he said, "Every year we buried 300 young black men who died violent deaths on our streets -- and black lives matter." There was tepid clapping.

http://miamiherald.typepad.com/nakedpolitics/2015/07/national-urban-league-martin-omalley.html

[elleng]

2. Martin O'Malley's Comprehensive Law Enforcement Reform Plan (First and Only 2016 Candidates' Plan)

A Reinvestment and Rehabilitation Framework for America’s Criminal Justice System
The full body of Governor Martin O'Malley's law enforcement reform plan

____America’s criminal justice system is badly in need of reform. For too long our justice system has reinforced our country’s cruel history of racism and economic inequality—remaining disconnected from our founding ideals of life, liberty, and equal treatment under the law.

Our country needs new leadership that will honestly assess our broken criminal justice system and put forward solutions that will:

•Ensure that justice is delivered for all Americans—regardless of race, class, or place.

•Build trust between law enforcement and the communities they serve.

•Ensure fairness and equal treatment for all people at every step within our justice system. >>>

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1251&pid=484008

[Live and Learn]

3. That is a good start but a rather simple plan considering the enourmous reforms

that our justice system demand to earn its name.

Stop making private prisons rich by incarcerating people that don't need to be jailed to protect public. And quit using jail as a punishment. There are much better ways for people to make amends for their wrong doings that might actually teach them something and serve society than imprisoning them.

Give those that must be imprisoned for societies protection the mental health and educational help they need to survive without commuting crimes when they are released. Invest in proactive ways to keep people from turning to criminal ways for support.

A person that has served their time shouldn't be referred to as a "felon" for life. They need to be able to get jobs as well as vote.

When O'Malley starts being as tough on the criminal justice system as he was on "crime" (which fed the private prisons well), I'll be more than happy to listen.

[bigtree]

4. you didn't make a very good case for your complaint

Last edited Sat Aug 1, 2015, 08:20 AM - Edit history (1)

...doesn't sound like you read his plan at all, beginning with the concern about private prisons and continuing with concern for mental health.

read the plan...

Ensure Fair Sentencing

Sentencing laws should treat all individuals fairly—ensuring that dangerous individuals are held accountable, setting lower penalties for less serious offenses, and providing opportunities for full rehabilitation.

Use Detention Only as a Last Resort. O’Malley will direct the Department of Homeland Security to use alternatives to detention for the vast majority of people, including for all children, families, LGBT individuals, and other vulnerable individuals. This includes using the family placement and community-based supervision policies he successfully implemented in Maryland.

Make Robust Investments in Community Mental Health Infrastructure. Although the rate of serious mental illness is two to six times higher among incarcerated populations, more than 80 percent of people with mental illness in jails and prisons do not receive care. O’Malley will invest to provide adequate mental health treatment and substance abuse treatment within correctional facilities. Additionally, he will call for community-based recovery for individuals suffering from mental illness, setting a national target for reducing the number of Americans with serious mental illness behind bars. He will work with Congress to make critically needed investments in housing, supported employment, and outpatient treatment.

Work to Eliminate For-Profit Prisons

There are approximately 130 private prisons in the United States. They house nearly half of all immigrant detainees, in addition to six percent of the state and 16 percent of the federal prison population. These facilities earn the private prison industry $3.3 billion in annual revenue, backed by nearly $25 million in lobbying over the past 25 years. This includes industry lobbying to protect perverse incentives, the strict enforcement of sentencing and immigration laws, and contracts that require correctional facilities and immigration detention centers to remain full even when crime is falling.

As president, Governor O’Malley will:

Phase Out Federal For-Profit Prisons. This includes closing for-profit immigration detention centers, while using alternatives to detention in the immigration context whenever possible.

REINVEST TO ENSURE JUSTICE

As a nation, our divestment in education, job creation, and healthcare has resulted in some communities turning to law enforcement as a first and last resort—from providing student discipline to addressing addiction and mental illness. Reversing this trend by reinvesting in these areas will relieve our overburdened justice system, and ensure that law enforcement is able to focus on the most violent crimes.


read more: http://www.democraticunderground.com/1251484008

[Live and Learn]

5. Because that is not what the article attached to this OP states.

I have now looked at the link you posted and while it sounds pretty good, I still question O'Malley's past contribution to our ridiculous incarceration rates.

I have always defended you in the past but I don't appreciate your snark at my not reading what wasn't even posted.

[bigtree]

6. no snark intended

...straightforward observation that it looked like you didn't read his plan - thus the highlighting of several paragraphs and the link I provided.

That's a pretty mild rebuke to your own sharp comment toward O'Malley:

"When O'Malley starts being as tough on the criminal justice system as he was on "crime" (which fed the private prisons well), I'll be more than happy to listen."

When these politicians get things right, I tend to acknowledge that. There's a lot of 'right' stuff in this plan which stands alone in this campaign in its specificity and scope. Hope this law enforcement/justice reform plan finds you 'happier to listen.'

[FSogol]

7. K&R. It's not just talk. He already did those things in Maryland. n/t