Senators on Both Sides Block DC Crime Bill
http://victorygirlsblog.com/senators-both-sides-block-dc-crime-bill/
Did hell freeze over? Late on Wednesday, both Republican and Democrat senators voted to block the District of Columbia’s criminal code from becoming law. What’s more, President Biden indicated he would sign the bill. Who knew?
The Crime Bill the Senators Rejected
A little background here:
Last year the DC Council approved an overhaul of the city’s criminal code, and they approved it unanimously. It was the first time in over 100 years that the code underwent comprehensive changes. But the problems were the items included in the changes.
They were a criminal’s dream: the elimination of mandatory minimum sentences, as well as the reduction of maximum penalties for crimes like robbery and carjacking. Plus, it would also expand the right to a jury trial for most misdemeanors.
DC Mayor Muriel Bowser vetoed the measure, saying I believe it’s more important to get this opportunity right than to add policies & weaken penalties into what should be a bill that makes D.C. safer. She had right to veto it; Washington, DC has one of the highest crime rates in the nation, even when comparing it to cities of all sizes.
But the DC Council overrode the mayor’s veto. Supporters of the code, like defense attorney Patrice Sulton, who helped write it, defended it by saying it fixed “gaps in the law.”
The reason why Congress voted on the new code is because this is the District of Columbia, and since DC isn’t a state it falls to Congress to have oversight over the city. The Constitution permits it to review DC legislation, and even modify or overturn it.
Prior to the vote, protesters gathered outside the Capitol building, accusing lawmakers opposed to the new criminal code of wanting to “mass incarcerate” black people or something.
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Mad Poet Strikes Again.
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