More Incarceration in D.C. Will Not Increase Public Safety
As concerns over recent increases in crime continue in the District, some city leaders have defaulted to a knee-jerk reaction, opting yet again to increase incarceration over taking a forward-thinking, data-driven approach to improving public safety. Recently, the D.C. Council rushed to approve an emergency bill that, among other troubling provisions, would add to the number of children and adults who will be detained while awaiting trial.
D.C. Leaders should reject harmful policies that will increase incarceration and advance data-driven policies that will reduce incarceration and crime
The Safer Stronger DC Amendment Act of 2023 (SSDC) will increase pretrial detention for youth and adults, lengthen sentences for some offenses, and significantly rollback the District’s successful Second Look law. The SSDC is a harmful, regressive policy that will worsen mass incarceration and racial disparities in the District without making our communities safer.
D.C. Deserves A Modern Criminal Code
The District of Columbia recently passed The Revised Criminal Code Act (RCCA) to modernize its outdated criminal code. Now, politicians in Congress are threatening to block D.C.'s years-long efforts and preserve century-old policies that hamper public safety, perpetuate racial disparities, and contribute to mass incarceration.
The RCCA is a common sense, evidence-based policy that promotes justice and public safety.
This comprehensive update to D.C.’s criminal code increases sentences for certain serious offenses while adjusting others to make them more proportionate. The RCCA authorizes lengthy sentences for serious offenses like carjacking, robbery, and burglary, that are higher than current sentences imposed by D.C. judges. The RCCA gives judges greater discretion on sentencing by eliminating mandatory minimums and restores the right to a jury trial for misdemeanors, bringing D.C. in line with most other states in the country.
D.C leaders and residents overwhelmingly support a revised code
The RCCA is the result of a robust and collaborative effort over 16 years involving many stakeholders including prosecutors, defense attorneys, and legal scholars. District voters overwhelmingly support the RCCA and the reforms it brings to The District. 83% percent support the revisions made by the RCCA. 93% support jury trial for offenses that carry any jail time and support eliminating mandatory minimum sentences by a 3 to 1 margin.
The RCCA is a common sense, evidence-based policy that promotes justice and public safety.
This comprehensive update to D.C.’s criminal code increases sentences for certain serious offenses while adjusting others to make them more proportionate. The RCCA authorizes lengthy sentences for serious offenses like carjacking, robbery, and burglary, that are higher than current sentences imposed by D.C. judges. The RCCA gives judges greater discretion on sentencing by eliminating mandatory minimums and restores the right to a jury trial for misdemeanors, bringing D.C. in line with most other states in the country.
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D.C. Deserves a Modern Criminal Code
