A victory and more work ahead

Fighting the good fight

[Reprinted from Issues & Views December 30, 2002]

Here is a moving end-year greeting from Julie Stewart, president of Families Against Mandatory Minimums, to all who support the work of FAMM:

It's hard to believe that a dozen years ago my brother went to prison for growing marijuana. Little did I know that his incarceration would sow the seeds of a national advocacy organization to reform mandatory minimum sentencing laws. FAMM was started in the summer of 1991, when I naively believed that if policymakers knew how stiff the laws were and how deeply they affected individuals and their families, they would repeal them. I have learned a lot since then.

I have learned that the truth is not always welcome and that justice is too often drowned out by politics. But I have also learned that change is possible--it's just not as quick as I would like it to be. It is also incremental. I no longer expect members of Congress to "wake up" and repeal all mandatory minimum sentencing laws. But I do expect them, and state legislators, to chip away at the laws, weakening them to the point that they will eventually be powerless. . . .

In the past 11 years, [FAMM members] have worked with us to explain what is wrong with mandatory sentencing laws. Your cases have contributed to hundreds of media stories and have forced legislators to see the human impact of the laws they pass. The work you have done in your communities--educating your friends, reporters, legislators, religious and community leaders--has directly contributed to the growing understanding that mandatory sentencing laws are unjust.

It is that groundwork that makes possible the sentencing reforms poised to take place in Michigan ** and that are being considered in many other states. Your voices are responsible for this year's changes to the U.S. sentencing guidelines that will allow 1,200-1,300 drug defendants to have fairer sentences. And your participation in our training workshops and lobby days will insure that the bad news about mandatory sentencing laws is spread far and wide.

So, as I look back on this year, I am proud of the level of commitment and impact that FAMM members have made toward changing these rigid sentencing laws, and I want to thank you. I am also keenly aware of how many people will spend another holiday behind bars instead of with their families. This alone is motivation enough for me to gear up for another year of fighting for sentencing justice. I know that I can count on you to join me.

** On Dec. 12, 2002, a bipartisan majority of the Michigan Senate passed a historic package of three sentencing bills that eliminate most of the state's draconian mandatory minimum sentences for drug offenses. The reform allows judges to impose sentences based on a range of factors in each case, and also permits earlier parole for some prisoners, at the discretion of the parole board.

And, on Christmas Day, 2002, Gov. John Engler signed this legislation, thereby repealing most mandatory minimum sentencing laws in Michigan. Rep. Bill McConico (D-Detroit), sponsor of the bills said, "This major step brings fairness back to the judicial system in Michigan. The overwhelming bipartisan support for this legislation shows it is not a partisan issue. We were able to unite Republicans, Democrats, prosecutors, judges and families in the common cause of sentencing justice. Now we can reunite families, reallocate resources and allow judges to do their job."

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