Proposed Bipartisan Commission Would Examine the U.S. Criminal Justice System

The Senate Judiciary Committee is considering a bill introduced by Sen. Jim Webb, D. Va., that would establish a bipartisan commission to examine the nation’s criminal justice system and figure out how to make it more effective and fair.

The commission would be tasked with identifying the system’s strengths and weaknesses and making recommendations to Congress about reducing the incarceration rate, lowering crime rates, restructuring our approach to drug policy, improving the treatment of mental illnesses, and other reforms.

Currently, the U.S. criminal justice system incarcerates more people than any system in the world. It has been particularly devastating to communities of color, with minorities making up a disproportionate share of the incarcerated population. Furthermore, the system is unsuccessful at reintegrating ex-offenders, resulting in high rates of recidivism.

In testimony to Congress about the commission in June, civil rights lawyer Charles J. Ogletree, Jr., Jesse Climenko Professor of Law and founding and executive director of the Charles Hamilton Houston Institute for Race & Justice, discussed four areas that the commission should examine: mandatory minimum sentencing; effective re-entry programs to help ex-offenders become productive members of society; the school-to-prison pipeline; and the role bias plays in decision-making in the criminal justice system.

“Incarceration should be our choice of last, not first, resort, and our precious resources should be reallocated toward preventing crime in the first place by educating children and providing them with alternatives to gang affiliation, violence, and drugs,” Ogletree said. “Given all that we know about the effectiveness of prevention over harsh punishment, it would be utterly counter-productive for this nation to continue its present course in regards to criminal justice policies and laws.”