Publications
Smart on Crime: The Need for Reform
Earlier this month, a coalition of criminal justice and human rights organizations including the Open Society Foundations released “Smart on Crime: Recommendations for the Administration and Congress.” One of the most comprehensive documents highlighting the challenges confronting federal criminal justice policy, the Smart on Crime report seeks to provide policymakers in the 112th Congress and the Obama Administration with recommendations for change.
Over 40 organizations and individuals who are leading voices in federal criminal justice reform collaborated to produce the report, which identifies over 100 concrete policy recommendations across 16 broad issues areas.
The issue areas include:
- Combating unnecessary expansions of criminal law.
- Advocating for improvements to investigatory and forensic science standards.
- Ensuring that persons accused of crimes have an opportunity to receive a fair trial.
- Helping persons who have served their sentences successfully enter their communities.
- Protecting the rights and dignity of victims of crime.
Recommendations range from helping to restore and empower victims to identifying ways to protect the rights of the accused. The Smart on Crime report is informed by five fundamental principles, which should be a part of all criminal justice system reforms: fairness, accuracy, effectiveness, evidence, and cost-effectiveness.
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