"Health & Medical News"

Even as U.S. lawmakers, jurists and policymakers have eased some mandatory drug sentences, Canada’s Justice Minister is proceeding with a plan to introduce the concept to the Canadian justice system, the Regina Leader-Post reported Nov. 28.

A pair of Canadian government reports concluded that mandatory minimum drug sentences don’t work, with one 2005 study concluding, “Minimum sentences are not an effective sentencing tool: that is, they constrain judicial discretion without offering any increased crime prevention benefits.”

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A bill to repeal Rhode Island’s mandatory drug sentences, passed by the legislature but vetoed by Gov. Don Carcieri, could come up for debate during a special legislative session, the Providence Journal reported Oct. 26.

The agenda for this week’s special session of the General Assembly has not been finalized, but advocates are hoping the mandatory-minimums issue is included. Rep. Joseph Almeida, who sponsored the legislation, slammed Carcieri’s veto. “Why doesn’t he listen to the people,” Almeida said. “Isn’t this the house of the people?”

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The U.S. Supreme Court this week heard arguments on whether judges should have more say in sentencing offenders, and seemed to be leaning toward broadening judicial discretion, the Los Angeles Times reported Oct. 3.

Critics say mandatory sentencing guidelines rob jurists of the power to alter sentencing based on the facts of individual cases, often result in overly harsh punishment, and have helped fill prisons with low-level drug offenders. But the U.S. Justice Department wants the mandatory minimums maintained, with Deputy Solicitor General Michael R. Dreeben arguing that the alternative would be widely varying sentences for identical crimes.

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