ST PAUL, MN, April 29, 2016 – Responding to the drug sentencing reform agreement reached by prosecutors, law enforcement and defense attorneys, the undersigned organizations released this statement:

“Minnesota’s bizarre and overly harsh drug sentencing rules are in desperate need of an overhaul,” said Anita Alexander, ISAIAH Board member and a retired assistant warden. “This is a step in the right direction.”

“As I’ve been saying for years, it is insane to lock up people who need treatment for addiction. It doesn’t help them, and it is simply inhumane,” said Minister Toya Woodland of Christ Temple Apostolic Church.

The proposal reduces some sentences, eliminates some mandatory minimums, increases certain drug threshold amounts, and drops trace amounts from felony to gross misdemeanor, all of which are important and overdue reforms. However, the proposal institutes some new mandatory minimums and reduces threshold amounts for marijuana charges.

“This proposal is mixed, but is an important milestone that will make a positive difference in many people’s lives, ” said Carin Mrotz, Deputy Director of Jewish Community Action.

“We are in the midst of a national sea-change. There is an awakening to the harsh realities of our so-called justice system. Too many black and brown bodies are locked up. We are over-policed and over-incarcerated. Thousands of directly impacted people, their families, and faith leaders have been organizing for change,“ said Catalina Morales, ISAIAH organizer.

“The proposal to open a 1,600 for-profit prison in far western Minnesota activated a huge response from the community, including several major actions at the Capitol. These stories, and these voices, need to be at the front and center of the discussion, not the margins of this discussion,” said Nekima Levy Pounds of the Minneapolis Chapter, NAACP. “We also renew our call for an overhaul of probation and supervised release policies to reduce recidivism and incarceration levels.”

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ISAIAH is an organization of congregations, clergy and people of faith throughout Minnesota working for racial and economic justice.

Jewish Community Action brings together Jewish people from diverse traditions and perspectives to promote understanding and take action on social and economic justice issues in Minnesota.

NAACP – Minneapolis Chapter  The mission of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People is to ensure the political, educational, social, and economic equality of rights of all persons and to eliminate race-based discrimination.

TakeAction Minnesota is a statewide people’s network of individual and organizational members working together to motivate people to act publicly in order to advance economic and racial equity in our state. The organization has offices in St. Paul, Duluth and Grand Rapids.