Smart Criminal Justice Alternatives
Adopted at the in 2014
WHEREAS, the President s National Drug Control Strategy outlines a public health and public safety approach to drug policy; and
WHEREAS, the Obama Administration is promoting asmart on crime approach using innovative criminal justice reforms including risk assessment tools, diversion programs, evidence-based community supervision models, in-custody treatment, and reentry services to break the cycle of drug use, crime, arrest, and incarceration; and
WHEREAS, the Affordable Care Act makes access to treatment a new reality for millions of Americans as it ends discrimination by requiring insurance companies to cover treatment for substance use disorders, expanding treatment and reentry services for those in the justice system and targeting expansion of care for populations with an unmet need for substance abuse treatment; and
WHEREAS, as demonstrated by passage of the Fair Sentencing Act and support of the Smarter Sentencing Act, the Administration is committed to revisiting mandatory minimum sentencing; and
WHEREAS, the Obama Administration, through itsSmart on Crime Initiative, revised Federal charging policy and developed criteria for diverting individuals with federal non-violent drug offenses away from incarceration to community-based supervision, treatment, and other services; and
WHEREAS, drug courts are a proven alternative to incarceration for justice-involved individuals with substance use disorders and have been a model for the development of other types of front-end diversionary programs and strategies, such as drug market interventions, prosecutorial diversion, and community courts; and
WHEREAS, the Administration is making strides in eliminating barriers to reentry and recovery, addressing federal collateral consequences, providing treatment in federal reentry centers, and supporting reentry measures at the local level; and
WHEREAS, the Obama Administration is working with mayors across the country to stop the school-to-prison pipeline through several administration-wide initiatives such as My Brother s Keeper, the National Youth Violence Prevention forum, and the Zero tolerance School Discipline project; and
WHEREAS, in an effort to address disproportions and instill fairness in the system, the Obama Administration has established a new initiative to encourage individuals incarcerated for federal non-violent drug offenses to seek clemency and has issued new guidelines for compassionate release,
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that The United States Conference of Mayors encourages Mayors to support the Obama Administration s drug policy reform goals to implement smart on crime approaches to divert individuals away from the criminal justice system, reduce incarceration, and make the system more effective and fair.