Race to Incarcerate Chapters 4-8 Regina Cavada Connor Warren

Chapter 4: Crime as Politics 1973: New York State passes the Rockefeller Drug Laws 1977: Felony Firearms Statute: Two year mandatory prison sentence for use of a firearm in a felony 1984: Sentencing Reform Act: Established a federal sentence commission 1988: Reagan Administration “Get tough on drugs”

Presidential Administrations Ronald Reagan Ideological shift on crime policy: “Big government is not the solution” “Get Tough on Drugs” Edwin Zedlewski New form of cocaine - “Crack” Bill Clinton Appeal to suburban votes High-profile crimes George W. Bush “Compassionate Conservatism” $450 mil. initiative for children of prisoners $300 mil. initiative for prisoner reentry programs

“One with gun gets you two” “More prisons or more crime” “Just say no”

Chapter 5: The Prison- Crime Connection The incarceration rate in the US has seen a 400% increase in the last 30 years However, there has not been a significant decrease in the nation’s crime rates Two major ways in which to measure crime The FBI’s Uniform Crime Report (UCR) DOJ’s victimization survey National Academy of Sciences Incarceration increases have had little, to no effect on crime. Preventive and rehabilitative strategies will be more useful than the current penal system Possible relationship between crime and incarceration: Decline of crime in the 90’s Inaccurately portrays the relationship Summary: Societal factors leading people to crime are becoming increasingly worse

Chapter 6: The Limits of the Criminal Justice System on Crime Control Deliverable 1 FBI’s Index Crimes Only ⅙ result in a suspect being arrested and charged with an offense Diminishing Returns in Crime Control A policy to imprison more offenders would result in greater numbers of nonviolent offenders would be locked up “Replacement Effect” Some offenders are replaced on the streets by others ready to take their place “Why have the policies adopted in recent years been so ineffective and even counterproductive in addressing the problem of crime?”

Chapter 7: African Americans and the Criminal Justice System Historically, race and ethnicity have been associated with incarceration rates. Immigrants in the 1800’s deal with many struggles similar to those of modern day African Americans African Americans have felt the greatest impact of increasing rates of incarceration Since 1926, there has been an 829% increase in incarcerated African Americans As opposed to the 120% rise in the total population of African Americans Contributing factors to the increase: Demographic changes Baby Boomer Generation African American youth unemployment Racial Disparity and Imprisonment Five major areas of focus

Chapter 8: The War on Drugs and the African American Community Presidential War on Drugs Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan Affected Demographics Minorities, specifically African American Incarceration due to Drug-Related Offense The rise of crack in the 1980’s

Would sustaining the current rate of incarceration, or turning to comprehensive rehabilitation programs lead to a significant decrease in the national crime rate? Should drug dealers alone face the possibility of jail time, or all that are associated with drug use (dealers and users alike)? How big of a role do you feel race plays into the judicial process?  i.e. are statistics telling the story, or being manipulated to fit the narrative? “Why are there so many potential offenders available to “replace” those who are apprehended by the justice system? Discussion Questions