Reluctant appeals court OKs 5-year crack sentence

[alp227]

Source: San Francisco Chronicle

(06-02) 16:59 PDT SAN FRANCISCO -- A federal appeals court reluctantly upheld a five-year prison term Thursday for a Los Angeles man who arranged a $250 crack cocaine sale, ruling that a new law narrowing the racially charged disparity between crack and powder cocaine sentences applies only to crimes committed after it passed.

Such a mandatory sentence for a "minor drug offense ... subverts justice and erodes the legitimacy of the criminal justice system," said the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco.

But the court said the language and history of the law reducing crack sentences contained no indication that it was intended to apply retroactively to crimes committed before the law took effect in August 2010.

The panel consisted of Judges Betty Fletcher, Stephen Reinhardt and Kim Wardlaw, all Democratic appointees with liberal records.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/06/02/BAFD1JOV14.DTL

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Liberal != soft on crime (!= means not equal in computer programming terms)?

[ixion]

1. 'crime'

:eyes:

[russspeakeasy]

2. Seems to be a disconnect...Steal $60 billion and you get a bonus

transact a $250 drug deal...go to prison. I'm sure that by monday, eric holder will have this all straightened out.

[orbitalman]

3. This is frigging stupid...

even if the guy went into rehab for an entire year, the payoff would be worth it.

[ohnoyoudidnt]

4. So they spend about 200k to lock this person up and then wonder why they are drowning in debt. nt

[KeepItReal]

5. $200k payable to a prison corporation most likely

How many prisons are still state run?