The Sentencing Project

The United States is an outlier nation in that it strips voting rights from millions of citizens solely on the basis of a criminal conviction. As of 2022, over 4.4 million people in the United States were disenfranchised due to a felony conviction. Read our new joint report with ACLU & Human Rights Watch: bit.ly/4eA5D2x

46 U.S. states have reduced both incarceration rates and crime in the last decade. We don’t have to return to a punitive playbook in the face of recent crime upticks. Learn more in our latest brief:

June 13 at 12PM ET: Join us for a webinar highlighting the importance of diversion as well as strategies for states and localities to expand diversion opportunities and reduce disparities at this critical stage of the juvenile court process. Register: bit.ly/4bve90O

Watch this month’s episode of Both Sides of the Bars! Our Senior Vice President Ronald F. Day, Ph.D. sat down with Dr. Ashley Nellis, Co-Director of Research at The Sentencing Project, to discuss mandatory minimums, how they perpetuate mass incarceration and how our lawmakers can instead invest in public safety and preventative programs.  Watch now: https://lnkd.in/gD4qm6qv

NEW: Legislation authorizing judges to review sentences after a person has served a lengthy period of time has been referred to as a second-look law. Our latest report highlights the evolution and growing momentum of the second look movement around the country.

This #SecondChanceMonth state advocates & researchers from North Carolina to Colorado worked to guarantee voting rights for persons completing their sentence inside & outside of prison and jail and for persons post-sentence. More in The Ballot Bulletin: https://bit.ly/4bjppwy

Join us on Wednesday, May 8th at 11am PT / 1pm CT / 2pm ET for a national dialogue on whether the parole system can be "rehabilitated." Inspired by Ben Austen’s new book, Correction: Parole, Prison and the Possibility of Change, panelists will discuss the history and intent of parole and how it has evolved over the decades based on research and personal experiences. Panelists will also discuss whether this system can be rehabilitated, or whether states should look to enacting second look judicial resentencing legislation instead. Lastly, we will also discuss concepts of restorative justice and how to engage victims in a trauma-informed way. Register: http://bit.ly/44ihYUj

APRIL 25: Join us at 12PM ET for a special discussion on how people with justice system involvement are mobilizing to make their voices heard through the civic engagement processes. Register: http://bit.ly/4avqOA6

“It’s extremely expensive to incarcerate people….Better investments could be made with public resources.” —Nazgol Ghandnoosh of The Sentencing Project on the state of prison reform. https://bit.ly/43zBSK2

Our latest report highlights reforms implemented by 23 states and eight other localities across the country to expand and improve the use of diversion as an alternative to arrest or formal prosecution in juvenile court.