07.13.16

In Wake of Recent Violence & Upheaval, Durbin Calls for Action on Criminal Justice Reform

WASHINGTON—U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today spoke on the floor of the Senate to call on Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to schedule a vote on the Senate’s bipartisan Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act. In the wake of recent violence and upheaval across the country, Durbin, who was joined by his co-authors, Senators Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Cory Booker (D-NJ), and Mike Lee (R-UT), called for action on the bipartisan criminal justice reform legislation as a step toward justice and reconciliation at a time when America needs it most.
  
“What we’re setting out to do here is to right an injustice—an injustice that is filling federal prisons, sentencing individuals for lengthy sentences for nonviolent drug offences,” said Durbin. “This is long overdue, and it’s something we need to do. If we did it, it would say to those across America who are asking if Congress is listening, if the Senate is awake to what’s going on in our country—it would say to them yes, on a bipartisan basis, these four senators and many more are prepared to bring reform to our criminal justice system. Will it solve all our problems? No, not at all, but it’s a significant step forward.”
  
Video of Durbin’s remarks on the Senate floor are available here.