California state Senator Holly Mitchell (D-Los Angeles) is pushing Senate Bill 1010 to “equalize” punishments for crack cocaine and powder cocaine based on a perception that harsher crack sentences are “racist.”
Mitchell’s bill comes in reaction to those who believe crack cocaine punishments are more severe than powder cocaine punishments because crack “is perceived as more prevalent in communities of color.”
According to The Sacremento Bee, the drive behind the change comes in part from Susan Burton, who was arrested on a crack charge in 1989 and sentenced to five years in prison. Burton says that if her arrest had been over powder cocaine, she could have received only four years instead.
Burton described the crack punishment as “a subtle form of justified racism” and has founded “an organization that works with women incarcerated on cocaine charges.”
SB 1010 faces opposition from Republicans, who believe the only change that should take place in cocaine sentences is an increase in the powder cocaine punishment.
Bills similar to SB 1010 were introduced in 2004 and 2007 and “failed to receive even a floor vote.”
Follow AWR Hawkins on Twitter @AWRHawkins Reach him directly at awrawkins@breitbart.com.
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.