TROY DAVIS & MUMIA ABU ~JAMAL ~ ARE HAVING PRAYERS FOR JUSTICE SAID FOR THEM WORLD~WIDE ..WE CAN ALL ONLY HOPE AND PRAY THAT EVERYONE IN OUR U.S.CONGRESS THAT KNOWS AND UNDERSTANDS HOW UNJUST OUR U.S JUDICIAL SYSTEM CAN BE WITH OUR POORER AMERICANS,BECOMES ACTIVE IN MAKING SURE THAT TROY DAVIS OF GEORGIA AND MUMIA ABU~JAMAL OF PENNSYLVANIA RECEIVE FAIR AND JUST TRIALS BEFORE ANY POSSIBLE FUTURE EXECUTIONS TAKE PLACE.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

THE NATIONAL CRIMINAL JUSTICE COMMISSION ACT OF 2009

The National Criminal Justice Commission Act of 2009 that I introduced in the Senate on March 26, 2009 will create a blue-ribbon commission to look at every aspect of our criminal justice system with an eye toward reshaping the process from top to bottom. I believe that it is time to bring together the best minds in America to confer, report, and make concrete recommendations about how we can reform the process. This legislation has already garnered wide bipartisan support in Congress and from interest groups representing a range of backgrounds and political viewpoints.

Why We Urgently Need this Legislation:

With 5% of the world's population, our country now houses 25% of the world's reported prisoners.
Incarcerated drug offenders have soared 1200% since 1980.
Four times as many mentally ill people are in prisons than in mental health hospitals.
Approximately 1 million gang members reside in the U.S., many of them foreign-based; and Mexican cartels operate in 230+ communities across the country.
Post-incarceration re-entry programs are haphazard and often nonexistent, undermining public safety and making it extremely difficult for ex-offenders to become full, contributing members of society.

America's criminal justice system has deteriorated to the point that it is a national disgrace. Its irregularities and inequities cut against the notion that we are a society founded on fundamental fairness. Our failure to address this problem has caused the nation's prisons to burst their seams with massive overcrowding, even as our neighborhoods have become more dangerous. We are wasting billions of dollars and diminishing millions of lives.

We need to fix the system. Doing so will require a major nationwide recalculation of who goes to prison and for how long and of how we address the long-term consequences of incarceration.

MATERIALS & RESOURCES

Read the legislation, S. 714
Fact sheet on the legislation
Senator Webb's floor speech introducing the legislation
PARADE Magazine cover story, "What's Wrong with our Prisons?" Senator Jim Webb, Sunday March 29, 2009
The scope of the problem: relevant charts and graphs
List of Support for the National Criminal Justice Commission Act Of 2009
Opening Statement of Sen. Webb at Judiciary Subcommittee Hearing on National Criminal Justice Commission Act, June 11, 2009
Watch Senator Webb's Floor Speech Introducing the Legislation, March 26, 2009
Senator Webb's article on the Huffington Post, "Why We Must Reform Our Criminal Justice System"

MATERIALS FROM PAST HEARINGS, SYMPOSIUMS

Joint Economic Committee Hearing, conducted by Senator Webb, "Mass Incarceration in the United States: At What Cost?" October 2007
Joint Economic Committee Hearing, conducted by Senator Webb, "Illegal Drugs: Economic Impact, Societal Costs, and Policy Responses," June 2008
George Mason University Symposium, hosted by Senator Webb and the GMU Administration of Justice Department, "Drugs in America: Trafficking, Policy and Sentencing," October 2008
Senator Webb's Keynote Address to the Brookings Institution's Policy Roundtable on the Challenges to Prisoner Re-entry, December 2008

NEWS ARTICLES & COMMENTARY
Virginian Pilot editorial: "Time to reconsider U.S. justice system," April 6, 2009
Fredericksburg Free-Lance Star: "Behind-bars review," April 5, 2009
The Washington Post Writers Group: "Webb Leads the Charge for Much-Needed Drug, Prison Reform," April 5, 2009
Economist: "A Nation of Jailbirds," April 2, 2009
Daily Press: "Go After the Real Problem," March 31, 2009
New York Times: "Reviewing Criminal Justice," March 30, 2009
Lynchburg News & Advance: "Webb Takes on Politics' Third Rail: Prison Reform," March 29, 2009
Salon.com: "Jim Webb's courage v. the "pragmatism" excuse for politicians," March 28, 2009
The Virginian Pilot Editorial: "Time to Rethink Goals of Prison," January 5, 2009
Roanoke Times Editorial: "The Criminal Justice System Needs Help," January 5, 2009
Las Vegas Sun Editorial: "Voice for Broken Prisons," January 3, 2009
U.S. News & World Report: "James Webb Shows Leadership Regarding Prison Reform," January 2, 2009
New York Times Editorial: "Sen. Webb's Call for Prison Reform," January 1, 2009
Washington Post: "Webb Sets His Sights On Prison Reform," December 29, 2008
Daily Press: "Alternative to Jail for Addicts Gains New Supporter," December 28, 2008
The Virginian Pilot: "Senator Elevates Debate on Failed Drug, Prison Policies," October 18, 2008
The Roanoke Times Editorial: "A Sensible Call for Sentencing Reform," October 13, 2008
Washington Post Op-Ed: "Two Separate Societies: One in Prison, One Not," April 15, 2008
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

LAWYERS FOR POOR AMERICANS IS A WWW VOLUNTEEER LOBBY THAT SINGS OUT FOR OUR MIDDLE~CLASS AND WORKING POOR AMERICANS. WE CAN BE FOUND WITH ANY SEARCH ENGINE BY OUR NAME OR TELELEPHONE NUMBER. (424-247-2013) ~ WE BRING THE GOOD LIFE TO ALL OF America's little people ON THE WEB.

***MANY MORE IN OUR U.S.CONGRESS ARE NOW HEARING THE TRUTH !!!

---------------------------------------------

africa: ambazonia canarias estrecho / madiaq nigeria south africa canada: alberta hamilton maritimes montreal ontario ottawa quebec thunder bay vancouver victoria windsor winnipeg east asia: japan manila qc europe: alacant andorra antwerpen athens austria barcelona belgium belgrade bristol bulgaria croatia cyprus estrecho / madiaq euskal herria galiza germany grenoble hungary ireland istanbul italy la plana liege lille madrid marseille nantes netherlands nice norway oost-vlaanderen paris poland portugal romania russia scotland sverige switzerland thessaloniki united kingdom west vlaanderen latin america: argentina bolivia brasil chiapas chile colombia ecuador mexico peru puerto rico qollasuyu rosario santiago sonora tijuana uruguay valparaiso oceania: adelaide aotearoa brisbane darwin jakarta manila melbourne perth qc sydney south asia: india mumbai united states: arizona arkansas atlanta austin baltimore binghamton boston buffalo charlottesville chicago cleveland colorado danbury, ct dc hawaii houston hudson mohawk idaho ithaca kansas city la madison maine miami michigan milwaukee minneapolis/st. paul new hampshire new jersey new mexico new orleans north carolina north texas nyc oklahoma philadelphia pittsburgh portland richmond rochester rogue valley san diego san francisco san francisco bay area santa barbara santa cruz, ca seattle st louis tallahassee-red hills tennessee urbana-champaign utah vermont western mass worcester west asia: beirut israel palestine process: discussion fbi/legal updates indymedia faq mailing lists process & imc docs tech volunteer projects: print radio satellite tv video regions: oceania united states topics: biotech