Kevin Roberts won't have a voice in the upcoming debate over the Democratic crime bill, but at least he has Attorney General Janet Reno on his side.

Roberts' job is prisoners not politics. He is a controlled-release officer in Florida's State Parole Commission, and his job is to oversee the early release of nearly 2,000 criminals per month from state prisons - many of whom are violent offenders. Thanks to a federal court order banning prison overcrowding in Florida, it's one he's compelled to carry out.A solution to this problem has already been proposed: Repeal minimum mandatory sentences for drug offenders. It enjoys the support of Reno, the U.S. Sentencing Commission and the U.S. Judicial Conference, among others.

"Minimum mandatories" are a legacy of the 1980s, when Congress responded to the drug epidemic by intruding into judges' chambers. Where prison sentencing once was the domain of judges, with guidance from the U.S. Sentencing Commission, Congress stripped these rights by forcing judges to sentence drug offenders to mandatory terms based solely on the weight of the narcotics they were apprehended with.

Since large-scale drug dealers can sometimes evade minimum mandatories by turning evidence on others, the jails often end up being clogged with first-time users and those with little information to provide prosecutors. In some overcrowded state prisons, these prisoners eventually began to crowd out violent offenders.

Reforming mandatory sentences makes for good penal policy but bad politics. The Democratic crime bill introduced last week doesn't include a single reference to reforming minimum mandatories. To do so would risk being labeled as "soft on crime."

View Comments

The Republican crime bill is full of new minimum mandatories, and at least one senator has already let it be known that a crime package without these sentences will create political problems for Clinton.

While many Democrats are closet supporters of repealing minimum mandatories, most recognize that saying so publicly would be like handing the GOP a loaded assault weapon. The Democratic crime bill, proposed by Senate Judiciary Chairman Joseph Biden, D-Del., does not include any new minimum mandatories, but some Democrats fear even this stance will create a wedge issue with Republicans.

Reno has spoken out forcefully against minimum mandatories, both as a Miami prosecutor and as U.S. attorney general. But Reno's star status in the Clinton Cabinet has not proven influential enough. Even as the Justice Department remains opposed to adding new mandatories, several House Democrats are contemplating doing just that.

The Justice Department is joined in spirit by a small group of House Democrats. The Congressional Black Caucus, led by Rep. Craig Washington, D-Texas, is organizing an effort in the House to propose an alternative crime bill. They will be joined by Rep. Don Edwards, D-Calif., a former FBI agent who has already introduced legislation to repeal minimum mandatories. Edwards realizes that reform efforts in Congress will be even less likely to pass if they spill over into next year's elections.

Looking for comments?
Find comments in their new home! Click the buttons at the top or within the article to view them — or use the button below for quick access.