Crack bill becomes law
Yesterday morning, President Obama signed the crack bill into law! That same morning, the Washington Post ran an editorial praising the reform and singling FAMM out for our “relentless efforts”!
And over the weekend, our Massachusetts team scored a middle-of-the-night victory in the waning hours of the legislative session, securing parole eligibility for many prisoners serving mandatory minimum sentences in Massachusetts. Click here for details.
These wins aren’t just about policies, they’re about people – people who are in prison now or could be someday. Even though the crack bill isn’t retroactive (yet!), we’ve heard from prisoners and families thanking us for winning this important first step in crack reform. I want to share a few and I think you’ll see what motivates us to work even harder to make the new law retroactive.
“Hallelujah. My son is serving a 20-year sentence and was sentenced three years ago. What do we have to do to make this retroactive? … All I want is for my son’s sentence to be reduced to a fair amount of time. Although I am elated about our win, this must be made retroactive to be completely fair.”
— Mother of a man serving a mandatory minimum for crack
“Thank you so much! I know there is a great battle ahead. Please persevere for my son!”
— Father whose son is serving time for a crack offense
We hope their messages inspire you too. Reforms don’t come for free. To help us fight for retroactivity and for more victories like our win in Massachusetts, FAMM needs your help. Please donate now! We promise to work overtime to continue turning your dollars into real change.
We could not have won any of these victories without your help. Thank you so much for your commitment to FAMM and sentencing justice.
Best,
Julie
Julie Stewart
President
PS – Click hereto donate online, or send a check to FAMM at:
1612 K Street NW, Suite 700
Washington, DC 20006
