FAMM has resources and contacts to assist the media with reporting on mandatory minimum sentences and their effects on the country. Media inquiries should be directed to media@famm.org.
Stephanie was sentenced to life without parole when she was only 26 years old for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine base. At sentencing, Stephanie’s judge said that her role had “basically been as a girlfriend and bag holder and money holder. So certainly, in my judgment, it doesn’t warrant a life sentence.”… Read more »
Cindy Martinson, mother of Mandy Martinson, wrote the following op-ed in the Des Moines Register. U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder recently announced an important shift in Justice Department policy: He told federal prosecutors not to pursue mandatory minimum sentences for some nonviolent drug offenders. Unfortunately for me and my daughter, Mandy Martinson, Holder’s proposal is… Read more »
Sharanda was a first-time offender sentenced to life without parole for conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine. President Obama commuted her sentence on December 18, 2015. She will be released in 2016. On November 2, 2015, The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore devoted a segment to Sharanda’s case and the call for her release. Taxpayers… Read more »
Derrick started selling cocaine to finance his wife’s education and support his family. He was sentenced to five years in prison for possession with intent to distribute cocaine, plus an additional five years for possession of a firearm, even though Derrick’s gun was never used in connection with cocaine sales. UPDATE: Derrick was released to… Read more »
I want to keep this short, sweet, and direct because we have a lot of work to do. Last month, Attorney General Eric Holder announced significant changes in the charging practices of federal prosecutors. Perhaps more important, Holder threw the Justice Department’s full weight behind mandatory minimum sentencing reform. It was the first time since… Read more »
(Business Insider) — The Justice Department has taken the huge step of reforming America’s draconian drug sentences, but President Barack Obama has shown mercy to just one prisoner during his time in office. Obama’s lone commutation cut short the 22-year prison sentence of single mom Eugenia Jennings. (He’s also issued relatively few pardons, which are given to people who… Read more »
Good news on the sentencing guidelines front! On August 15, the U.S. Sentencing Commission decided which guideline changes they want to focus on in 2014 and one of them is to reduce all drug sentences by two levels! As you might remember, each year the U.S. Sentencing Commission, which writes the federal Sentencing Guidelines, suggests… Read more »
