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Louisiana Justice Reinvestment Task Force Report and Recommendations March 16, 2017

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Louisiana Justice Reinvestment Task Force Report and Recommendations March 16, 2017 Louisiana Justice Reinvestment Task Force Report and Recommendations March 16, 2017 Members of the Louisiana Justice Reinvestment Task Force Secretary James LeBlanc (Chair), Louisiana Department of Corrections Sheriff Mike Cazes, West Baton Rouge Senator Daniel Claitor, Louisiana State Senate Flozell Daniels, Foundation for Louisiana Public Defender James Dixon, Louisiana Public Defender Board District Attorney Bo Duhe, 16th Judicial District Chief Justice Bernette Johnson, Louisiana Supreme Court Hon. Lori Landry, 16th Judicial District Court Representative Terry Landry, Louisiana House of Representatives Representative Walt Leger, Louisiana House of Representatives Representative Sherman Mack, Louisiana House of Representatives Senator Danny Martiny, Louisiana State Senate Rev. Gene Mills, Louisiana Family Forum Hon. Laurie White, Louisiana Sentencing Commission Hon. Bonnie Jackson, 19th Judicial District Court was a former member of the Task Force The Task Force would like to honor the memory of Kevin Kane former Executive Director of The Pelican Institute for working to establish this body and for his many other contributions to criminal justice reform in Louisiana. 2 Louisiana Justice Reinvestment Task Force Report Table of Contents Members of the Louisiana Justice Reinvestment Task Force ..................................................................... 2 Table of Contents ......................................................................................................................................... 3 Executive Summary ...................................................................................................................................... 6 Overview of Task Force Recommendations ................................................................................................ 7 Impacts of the Task Force’s Consensus Recommendations ....................................................................... 8 Highest-in-the-Nation Imprisonment Rate................................................................................................ 12 National Picture .......................................................................................................................................... 14 Key Findings ................................................................................................................................................ 16 1. Findings: Imprisonment ..................................................................................................................... 17 2. Findings: Community Supervision ...................................................................................................... 24 3. Findings: Criminal Justice Financial Obligations ................................................................................. 27 4. Findings: Budgetary Decisions ........................................................................................................... 29 5. Findings: Crime Victim and Survivor Priorities ................................................................................... 31 Policy Recommendations ........................................................................................................................... 32 Ensure clarity and consistency in sentencing ......................................................................................... 32 Recommendation 1: Implement a felony class system to eliminate inconsistencies in sentencing and release. ......................................................................................................................................... 32 Recommendation 2: Increase equity by making back-end release mechanisms retroactive for those convicted of nonviolent offenses. ....................................................................................................... 34 Recommendation 3: Improve and streamline the victim notification process, indlucing registration into the system. .................................................................................................................................. 35 Focus prison beds on those who pose a serious threat to public safety ................................................ 36 Recommendation 4: Expand alternatives to incarceration. .............................................................. 36 Recommendation 5: Revise drug penalties to target higher-level drug offenses. ............................ 37 Recommendation 6: Consolidate laws on property crimes and raise the value threshold for felony charges. ............................................................................................................................................... 39 Recommendation 7: Distinguish penalties for weapons offenses and enhancements according to the severity of the underlying crime. .................................................................................................. 40 Recommendation 8: Reduce the window of time for which certain prior crimes would count toward current habitual offender penalty enhancements. ................................................................ 42 3 Louisiana Justice Reinvestment Task Force Report Recommendation 9: Establish a temporary furlough policy for inmates with serious medical needs. ............................................................................................................................................................ 42 Recommendation 10: Expand incentives for inmates to participate in recidivism reduction programming. ..................................................................................................................................... 43 Recommendation 11: Bring Louisiana into compliance with the Montgomery decision by retroactively extending parole eligibility to inmates who were juveniles sentenced to life without parole. ................................................................................................................................................. 44 Recommendation 12: Streamline parole releases for those who are compliant with case plans and institutional rules. ............................................................................................................................... 44 Strengthen Community Supervision ....................................................................................................... 45 Recommendation 13: Focus community supervision on the highest-risk period by reducing maximum probation terms and establishing an earned compliance credit incentive. ...................... 45 Recommendation 14: Address gaps and deficiencies in swift, certain, and proportional sanctions for violations of probation and parole conditions. ............................................................................. 46 Clear Away Barriers to Successful Reentry ............................................................................................. 48 Recommendation 15: Address collateral consequences of felony convictions that create barriers to reentry. ............................................................................................................................................... 48 Recommendation 16: Tailor criminal justice financial obligations to a person’s ability to pay. ....... 49 Recommendation 17: Modify penalties for failure to pay criminal justice financial obligations. ..... 50 Recommendation 18: Suspend child support during incarceration. ................................................. 51 Recommendation 19: Expand eligibility period for Transitional Work Programs and increase take- home pay. ........................................................................................................................................... 51 Reinvest a Substantial Portion of the Savings ......................................................................................... 52 Recommendation 20: Reinvest more than half of the dollars saved from reduction in the state prisoner population. ........................................................................................................................... 52 Collect Data and Track Outcomes ........................................................................................................... 55 Recommendation 21: Mandate data collection and tracking of performance measures to monitor implementation and outcomes of the state’s Justice Reinvestment reforms. ................................... 55 Majority Recommendations ...................................................................................................................... 56 Majority Recommendation 1: Provide the opportunity for parole consideration to some of Louisiana’s longest-serving inmates. .................................................................................................. 56 Majority Recommendation 2: Prospectively eliminate life without parole sentences for juveniles, granting parole review after 30 years. ................................................................................................ 57 Majority Recommendation 3: Make parole eligibility changes for violent offenses retroactive. ..... 58 Majority Recommendation 4: Focus habitual offender penalties on more serious crimes. ............. 58 4 Louisiana Justice Reinvestment Task Force Report Majority Recommendation 5: Target mandatory minimum sentences for possession of a firearm by a felon on those with prior violent felony convictions. .....................................................................
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