Since taking office in May of 2018, Parson has acted on just one of these cases. But Parson does not deserve all the blame; previous governors such as Eric Greitens and Jay Nixon also deserve blame for creating this mountain of inaction. Parson though currently controls the Missouri government, so the duty falls to him to remedy the problem.

Historically speaking, Missouri acts of clemency usually revolve around highly publicized cases, as in the instance of Darrell Mease, whose sentence was commuted in 1999 after the visit of Pope John Paul II. But clemency should not strictly pertain to these extraordinary cases.

Given the legalization of marijuana for medicinal use, the governor should immediately grant a full pardon to anyone in a Missouri prison who has been convicted of a marijuana-related offense. Not only should this be an easy task for the governor to accomplish since it is the logical thing to do, but it will also initiate dismantling the rest of the backlog. It would get the ball rolling so to speak.

While Missouri is currently on track to full legalization of marijuana, it still has some of the toughest marijuana laws in the nation on the books. While possession of under 10 grams of marijuana is decriminalized for a first-time offense, selling and trafficking cannabis is still heavily cracked down on.

Attempting to sell less than 5 grams of marijuana is categorized as a Class C felony in Missouri and punishable with up to seven years in prison and $5,000 fine. While obviously logically contradictory, the current laws have contributed to enormous amounts of people wasting away in prison in Missouri for marijuana-related offenses. 

But why should Parson grant clemency to these people in addition to all those in Missouri prisons who used marijuana for medicinal uses? The governor should do so because marijuana legalization is coming quickly to Missouri. Marijuana is already decriminalized in the state, meaning that any adult possessing 10 grams or less of cannabis is only fined anywhere from $250-$1000 and charged with a misdemeanor for a first-time offense.

Ballot initiatives to recreationally legalize marijuana are collecting signatures to be on the ballot in 2020, which could make cannabis fully legal in the state by 2021. Even if this initiative does not succeed in passing, it is only a matter of time before marijuana is recreationally legalized in Missouri. The legal marijuana train is coming, and Parson better hop on before it is too late.

Granting clemency to those with marijuana-related convictions in Missouri would also generate positive press for the Parson administration. Acting on only one of the 3,500 petitions for clemency is a sin against his office. It not only signifies laziness but an utter contempt for the prison population of Missouri.

Since 1981, Missouri governors have acted on about 6,000 petitions for clemency. This means that on average that Missouri governors have responded to 158 petitions for clemency per year. Parson is totally behind the 8-ball in rejecting clemency in his only foray into the topic. Pardoning those in prison for marijuana offenses would signify that Parson is committed to lowering the backlog.

By granting clemency to these people, the governor would also contribute to lowering the prison budget in Missouri. For the 2016 fiscal year, the Missouri Department of Corrections spent $710 million dollars to maintain the Missouri prison system.  Granting clemency to inmates with marijuana convictions would reduce this budget substantially, freeing up money that Parson should then return to the taxpayers. 

This avenue would be a nice start for Parson to take in approaching the clemency backlog. He has already kicked the ball down the road in refusing to hear any petitions. The governor should learn from his mistakes and lead in 2020.

Missouri residents should prod the governor along by signing the marijuana initiative to get it on the ballot in 2020. This would signify to Parson that Missouri is ready for a change, spurring him to grant clemency to all those in prison on marijuana-related offenses.

From this, Parson should begin to attack the rest of the backlog. Not only would this address the serious neglect of clemency petitions, but it would also thrust Missouri into the progressive world of marijuana legalization.

The post Marijuana Legalization and The Crisis of Clemency in Missouri appeared first on The Libertarian Republic.

That was the largest single-day mass commutation of prisoners in state history, and the Oklahoma governor calls it the largest in the nation. But this story doesn’t end with the state. It’s just the beginning.

Oklahoma has one of the largest incarceration rates in the country and in one day they significantly reduced that. The Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board unanimously approved that 527 state inmates be commuted on Friday, November 1. Governor Kevin Stitt quickly approved it, and 462 of those prisoners walked free on Monday. The other 65 are being held on detainer.

The people of Oklahoma made it clear that they were moving forward with criminal justice reform for nonviolent offenders. In 2016, Oklahomans voted to lower penalties for numerous drug and property crimes by categorizing them as misdemeanors instead of felonies; thus, reducing sentencing and the unrelenting black mark that a felony offense carries.

In the spring of 2019, the legislators made it possible for the governor to retroactively commute nonviolent offenders’ sentences. In other words, the 2016 reforms of how crimes are punished and categorized apply to those currently serving unduly harsh time in prison. This made it possible for the hundreds of prisoners to be released on Monday.

“We are making great progress this Legislative session on criminal justice reform, from investing in drug courts and diversion programs to stabilizing District Attorneys’ funding sources by ending their dependency on fines, fees and court costs. My administration remains committed to changing our state’s number one incarceration ranking,” –Governor Stitt, May 2019

Many of the prisoners released were women. The state of Oklahoma incarcerates women at the highest rate in the country. Governor Stitt greeted about 70 newly freed female prisoners as they left the Eddie Warrior Correctional Facility on Monday.

The fight for reform is partially governmental and strictly legal, but the work to help former prisoners reenter society is largely handled by private hands. Chrystalynn Sanchez is a criminal justice reform advocate that works for Reaching Our City (ROC). ROC operates one of the largest food pantries in the Oklahoma City area, and the Career Navigator program that helps applicants find training/certification for employment opportunity.

In the near future, ROC plans on opening a legal aid clinic to assist those charged with low-level crimes. Sanchez hopes that legal assistance will prevent them from falling into the revolving-door of the criminal justice system.

Through ROC, Sanchez works with Celebrate Recovery a ministry that assists those struggling to overcome hurt, pain, or addiction. The organization is providing the former inmates with hygiene products and clothing that will aid them in finding employment and reentering society.

The ministry facilitated transportation of the newly freed inmates as they were released on Monday. Sanchez tells me that the solutions in this situation is “less of a single ministry and more of an effort from all the programs that work with women”.

The state took a positive step forward in criminal justice reform, but work continues to ensure that newly freed prisoners have opportunities in society and don’t end up back in prison.

Reaching Our City will have a benefit art auction to raise money for their job training program on November 14. To donate and/or learn more about them go to their website here.

The post Criminal Justice Reform: Oklahoma Releases Over 400 Prisoners, But It Doesn’t End There appeared first on The Libertarian Republic.

America is often touted as the “land of the free”. Is that an accurate statement? Let’s take a look at some of the ways in which the US government restricts freedom in the modern age.

Before 1913, the federal government got most of its money through tariffs and excise taxes. Since the income tax became a permanent feature of American life, nearly every working person has had a chunk of each paycheck sent off to Washington. And almost all state governments tax working people as well, meaning that most working people are taxed twice on the same income. Additional taxes include property taxes, state sales tax, cigarette tax, alcohol tax, gasoline tax, inheritance tax, and license plate and car ownership transfer taxes. These are just a few of the seemingly-endless amount of taxes that most Americans end up paying at some point each year. Even many behaviors that aren’t “taxed” are often still regulated and require participants to get a license or permit. Some such activities include marriage, hunting, fishing, owning a pet, buying and carrying a gun, construction, and starting and running a business.

Then there is the Patriot Act, which allows the governmental to indefinitely detain someone and deny them a trial simply by declaring them to be a terrorist. Detention of innocent people is nothing new in the US, however. Over 100,000 Americans of Japanese ancestry, many of whom were born in the US, were forcibly removed from their homes and put in internment camps after the bombing of Pearl Harbor during WWII. What happened to their rights? While most people today probably wouldn’t think that the government would do that again, the Supreme Court case in which the internment was judged Constitutional has yet to be overturned. And as we’ve repeatedly seen throughout history, it’s only a matter of time before the government uses and abuses a power it holds.

Freedom and wealth are continuously being taken from civilians and transferred to politicians and politically-connected special interests. Almost every amendment in the Bill of Rights is violated each day. Government restrictions on speech, trade, travel, and a multitude of other peaceful activities are too numerous to count and have increased dramatically over time. Over 2 million people in the US are in prison, many of whom shouldn’t even be there in the first place; this has resulted in the US having the highest incarceration rate in the world. Legal tender laws force people to use government currency that continuously loses value and prevents them from choosing what to use as money.

So is America truly a free country? If by “freedom” one means the ability to do as one likes provided they don’t violate anyone else’s rights, then the answer is no. Referring to it as such may have been accurate at some point in the country’s history, but, due to the above changes that have occurred (mostly in the 20^th century), that sentiment can only now be described as inaccurate if not well-meaning. Those who recognize this have committed themselves to restoring America’s lost freedoms. It is through the hard work and dedication of these determined people that, though the status quo may be tyranny, the future may be free.

The post America is not a Free Country appeared first on The Libertarian Republic.