Yesterday a bipartisan group of United States Senators announced changes to the Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act of 2015, S. 2123. “We are pleased to see that a group of Republican and Democratic Senators announced their willingness to take concrete steps towards much-needed sentencing reform,” said Sherrilyn Ifill, President and Director-Counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF). LDF noted that other provisions in the bill will be studied to determine the effect on reducing mass incarceration.
The proposed legislation described by the bipartisan group is the result of a process that began in Congress last year. Passing sentencing reform legislation has become a priority of President Obama. LDF’s Deputy Director of Policy, Monique Dixon, expressed her interest in studying the proposed legislation in greater detail. “We look forward to conducting a thorough review of the changes to the bill, and to engaging in substantive conversations with members of Congress about its provisions,” Dixon stated.
LDF remains committed to eliminating racial discrimination and disparities from criminal justice laws and policies, and to promoting fairness and proportionality in the administration of our criminal laws.
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Founded in 1940, the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF) is the nation’s first civil and human rights law organization and has been completely separate from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) since 1957—although LDF was originally founded by the NAACP and shares its commitment to equal rights. In media attributions, please refer to us as the NAACP Legal Defense Fund or LDF.
