Contact: Rabiah Burks
rburks@famm.org
202-822-6700

 

FAMM Condemns New Mandatory Minimums in Crime Bills Signed by Governor Larry Hogan

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Maryland Governor Larry Hogan (R) signed into law HB 1029, SB 101, and SB 1137, three crime bills that include new mandatory minimum sentences.

“What we’ve seen in Maryland this session is a reminder that the old ‘lock ‘em up’ narrative unfortunately still moves lawmakers to vote for mandatory sentences that are not proven to increase safety,” said FAMM vice president of policy Molly Gill. “Mandatory minimums won’t make Baltimore safer or stop the state’s opioid problems, but we fully expect them to put many people in prison for much longer than necessary. We applaud every lawmaker who followed the evidence and voted against mandatory minimums. We wish Governor Hogan would have done the same.”

The new mandatory sentencing provisions signed into law include:

• New 10-year mandatory prison sentences with no parole for people who commit a second “crime of violence” (SB 101)
• New 5-year mandatory minimum prison sentences with no parole for offenses involving 5 grams of pure fentanyl or 28 grams of a substance containing any detectable amount of a fentanyl analogue (SB 1137)
• New 1-, 3-, and 5-year mandatory minimum prison sentences with no parole for people who carry loaded handguns on their person or in their cars (HB 1029)

Throughout this legislative session, FAMM worked with numerous other Maryland organizations, including the Office of the Maryland Public Defenders, Justice Policy Institute, ACLU-Maryland, Leaders for a Beautiful Struggle, and Job Opportunities Task Force, among others, to oppose Governor Hogan’s efforts to create numerous new mandatory minimum sentences for drug, gun, and violent offenses.

“In previous years, Maryland lawmakers adopted evidence-based crime reduction strategies and eliminated some mandatory minimums,” said Gill. “It’s disappointing that the governor and so many lawmakers are reversing that progress with more mandatory sentences that will hurt communities and families.”

FAMM is a nonpartisan, national advocacy organization that promotes fair and effective criminal justice reforms to make our communities safe. Founded in 1991, FAMM promotes change by raising the voices of families and individuals who are directly affected by counterproductive sentencing and prison policies.  

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