A Message from US Sen. Chris Murphy (CT) About Sentencing Reform and Our Criminal Justice System.

Progressive Prison Project

Innocent Spouse & Children Project

Greenwich, Connecticut

A Message from United States Senator

 Chris Murphy (CT) 

About Sentencing Reform and 

Our Criminal Justice System.

We really like that Senator

    Murphy writes back to his constituents.  

His contact information is below.

Thank you for contacting me about sentencing reform and our criminal justice system. I appreciate your correspondence and hope you find this response helpful.

In 1986, Congress passed the Anti-Drug Abuse Act, which required mandatory minimum prison sentences for certain crimes in order to address concerns over drug trafficking and drug-related violence in cities across the country. While the intent of laws such as this was to punish high-level offenders more seriously and make communities safer, the effect has been to take individual discretion away from judges, often resulting in ineffective and excessive punishments for low-level offenders. Additionally, by requiring mandatory prison sentences for low-level offenders, these laws have not made communities safer and have resulted in severe overcrowding of our nation's prisons and a large strain on federal and state budgets.

Congress has since begun to re-evaluate these broken policies, as demonstrated by the recent introduction of several bipartisan bills. The Justice Safety Valve Act would allow judges more flexibility to impose sentences tailored to the seriousness of the crime and the offender, as long as they determine that doing so would not jeopardize public safety. This measure could significantly reduce the federal prison population without reducing our safety. You may be glad to learn that I am a cosponsor of this bill. I am also a cosponsor of the Second Chance Reauthorization Act, which would reauthorize the Second Chance Act and support programs designed to improve prisoner reentry into society and reduce recidivism.

There are many other areas for potential improvement in our justice system, and I look forward to learning more about the various legislative proposals. For instance, the Recidivism Reduction and Public Safety Act is a bill that was recently introduced that would require the Bureau of Prisons to assess the problem of recidivism and begin to offer evidence-based recidivism reduction programming for inmates.

I appreciate your insight on this issue. Our justice system was designed to provide equal justice under the law, and I will use my time in Congress to ensure that every American is afforded that right. I will keep your concerns in mind as all legislation relating to our justice system and sentencing reform moves through the Senate.

Thank you again for contacting me about this matter.  I appreciate hearing from you and assure you that I will always do my best to represent the views of my constituents in the Senate.  In the future, please do not hesitate to call me in my Connecticut office at (860) 549-8463 or my Washington office at (202) 224-4041.
 
Every Best Wish,
 
Christopher S. Murphy
United States Senator

Hartford

One Constitution Plaza, 7th Fl.
Hartford, Connecticut 06103
P: (860) 549-8463
F: (860) 524-5091

Washington, DC

303 Hart Senate Office Bldg.
Washington, DC 20510
P: (202) 224-4041
F: (202) 224-9750

 http://www.murphy.senate.gov/contact

__________________

 Some comments from Linked In: 

5 comments

• George Walters-Sleyon, M.Div. S.T.M., Ph.D. Stu

  Experienced Executive Director, Consultant/Strategist, Policy Analyst at The Center for Church and Prison, Inc.

  That was encouraging from Senator Chris Murphy… I read it. Hope more legislators could begin to look at this issue of criminal justice reform from a more holistic perspective rather than a tough on crime attitude.

  
  
• Gwen Campbell

  Wow! I am amazed and very pleased with Senator Murphy's involvement. It would be wonderful if more of our Senators and Congressmen would take the same approach. 

  
  
  Phillip Carter USA Nam Vet

  National Chaplain at National Incarcerated Veterans NetworkUSA

  Add a comment...We do keep our leaders in our prayers.

  
  
  Kimberly Brown

  President, Browns Business Enterprises

  Kudo's to Senator Murphy! This is our year...all of us who have labored for years to make change for those incarcerated, ex-offender's and underserved in this county! Our season is hear...confirmation through Senator Murphy's comments.

  
  Anonymous:

  
  Jeff, I believe this is an inappropriate use of this forum for your political purposes, even if I agree with them.

  
  

  My response:
  

  Thank you for your message. I sit on five nonprofit boards supporting prison related issues. I sent the Senator a letter and he replied, I thought it was great. I don't know him, I don't particularly support him or not and I don't even care what political party was a member of. He wrote a letter on point for our causes, I published it and promoted it. I hope this was helpful. 

_____________

Progressive Prison Project/
Innocent Spouse & Children Project
Christ Church Greenwich
254 East Putnam Avenue
Greenwich, Connecticut, USA 06830
Rev. Jeff Grant, JD, M Div, Director

Assoc. Minister/
Director of Prison Ministries
First Baptist Church of Bridgeport
126 Washington Avenue, 1st Floor
Bridgeport, Connecticut, USA 06604

(o) +1203.769.1096
(m) +1203.339.5887
jgrant@pppx.org
jg3074@columbia.edu

Lynn Springer, Advocate
lspringer@innocentspousechildrenproject.org
(m) +1203.536.5508

progressiveprisonproject.org

innocentspousechildrenproject.org  

Justice Reinvestment in Connecticut: The SouthWest Connecticut Justice Reinvestment Initiative

Progressive Prison Project

Innocent Spouse & Children Project 

Greenwich, Connecticut

Justice Reinvestment in Connecticut:

The SouthWest Connecticut Justice Reinvestment Initiative

Please join us at this important and informative conference

 on Justice Reinvestment and Criminal Justice Reform:

 "Building Bridges: Revisited"

Central Connecticut State University

Student Center, Alumni Hall

New Britain, CT, Tues., Jan. 14th

__________________

Southwest CT Justice Reinvestment Initiative

JUSTICE REINVESTMENT

Introduction

The harmful impacts of Connecticut’s policy of investing more state funding in prisons than in higher education has dire consequences on our economy.  The direct impact of this policy is clear: the number of people incarcerated has grown exponentially, while drastically undercutting community support services that facilitate and ensure success in community reentry.  Economies are regional and require systemic changes to assist policymakers and communities set priorities. Justice reinvestment is a model that could shift the focus for long-term policy changes to cut state spending and reinvest in affordable housing, access to jobs, transportation, good education, healthy environments, and safe places to recreate and live.

What is Justice Reinvestment?

Justice reinvestment is a data-driven approach to improve public safety, reduce corrections and related criminal justice spending, and reinvest savings in strategies that can decrease crime and strengthen neighborhoods. The purpose of justice reinvestment is to manage and allocate criminal justice populations more cost-effectively, generating savings that can be reinvested in evidence-based strategies that increase public safety while holding offenders accountable.

Justice Reinvestment in Connecticut would focus on reinvesting savings from decreased funding for prisons to investing the money in community supervision,  offender counseling, substance abuse rehabilitation and support systems including affordable housing, access to education and jobs to ensure success in community reentry. In short, it would allocate limited financial resources to produce better outcomes.

Why Justice Reinvestment?

·      It costs CT taxpayers over $50,000/year to incarcerate one CT prisoner when employee benefits and pensions are included.

·      This does not include the additional cost to manage our criminal justice system and related economy, community, family, children and human costs associated with each prisoner.

·      75% of CT inmates have a history of substance abuse. Addiction is a disease, which deserves rehabilitation, not criminalization and incarceration.

·      More than 50% of CT prisoners receive a sentence of less than two years. Non-violent drug and technical parole offenses should not automatically result in incarceration and re-incarceration.

How would Justice Reinvestment work?

Connecticut currently allocates $600 million for the state Department of Correction (DOC). If DOC spending could be decreased by 12.5% through reduced recidivism, more community supervision, etc., a savings of $75 million would be realized. Justice Reinvestment legislation could reallocate that savings in the following ways:

-       Direct reduction of state debt  ($25 million)

-       Enhanced community supervision in CT’s five cities where most crime occurs ($25 million)

-       Spending on opportunities which would prevent future incarcerations, e.g., housing, education, mental health/substance abuse treatment ($25 million)

What can you do?

Promote and support a call to action for legislation to create Justice Reinvestment efforts in CT.

Attend the "Building Bridges: Revisited" Conference on January 14th, at Central Connecticut State University

For more information, please feel free to contact me or any of the Board Members of the SouthWest Connecticut Justice Reinvestment Initiative. 

______________

We are not alone! Many states have Justice Reinvestment legislation and models that work, reduce recidivism and save the taxpayers money.  Learn more here:
Sentencing and Corrections Reforms in Justice Reinvestment States: Pew Research




Click HERE to register.
Online information available soon at www.ccsu.edu/imrp

Rev. Jeff Grant, JD, M Div
Director, Progressive Prison Project/
Innocent Spouse & Children Project

Christ Church Greenwich

254 East Putnam Avenue
Greenwich, Connecticut, USA 06830

Assoc. Minister/
Director of Prison Ministries
First Baptist Church of Bridgeport
126 Washington Avenue, 1st Fl.
Bridgeport, Connecticut, USA  06604

 

(0) +1203.769.1096

(m) +1203.339.5887
jgrant@progressiveprisonproject.org
jg3074@columbia.edu progressiveprisonproject.org