Press Releases
08/29/2016
Governor Malloy Applauds President Obama's Commutations for Nonviolent Offenders
(HARTFORD, CT) - Governor Dannel P. Malloy today applauded an announcement from President Barack Obama today that he is granting commutations to 111 additional individuals who received unduly harsh sentences under outdated laws. The sentences affected involve largely nonviolent drug offenses.
"Nationwide, both sides of the aisle are recognizing that a system of harsh, mandatory minimum sentences for nonviolent drug offenses reflect backwards policymaking. In order to be smart on crime, Democrats and Republicans, in states red and blue, are embracing a shift from the broken policies of the past to a modern, smarter approach," Governor Malloy said. "We must be a society not of permanent punishment, but of permanent reform. We must become a society that delivers second chances.
"These commutations by President Obama are an important step forward not just for the individuals they affect, but for the conversations they spawn and the attitudes they change. We all must recognize that to lower crime and reverse decades of backwards policies, we must rethink our approach. President Obama again showed tremendous leadership today."
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