Legislation

One of many bills which would generate a “new” crime would create specific penalties for individuals who commit larceny by stealing packages from either a house, office, or other dwelling.

This bill would unnecessarily expand the punishments which can be doled out under the animal cruelty laws, including for hoarding offenses.

Each legislative session, dozens of bills are introduced, and a number of them passed, which counteract the important work of criminal justice reform, as these new crimes and increased sentences are often arbitrary and almost always unnecessary.

The ACLU has consistently opposed the imposition of mandatory minimum sentencing terms on the grounds that they are ineffective, costly, eliminate individualized consideration of the offender and the offense, and place too much power in the hands of prosecutors instead of neutral judges.

We suggested several amendments to legislation which would have allowed the state police to create a comprehensive, statewide records management program.

Nothing encapsulated the issue of the “statehouse to prison pipeline” better in the 2018 session than the general assembly’s passage of legislation which would punish by up to a year in prison any person who “maliciously teases” a police horse or canine.

We supported this legislation which would have authorized the expungement of criminal convictions related to the possession of marijuana, presumably in conjunction with the legalization of the drug.