(Sacramento – April 23, 2019,) - This week the California State Assembly voted 45-28 to approve Assemblymember Jones-Sawyer’s (D- South Los Angeles) legislation that would remove the mandatory imposition of 180-days jail time as a condition of probation for the sale or transportation of cocaine, heroin and phencyclidine (PCP).
“Mandatory minimum sentences are an overly punitive and ineffective approach to reducing drug-related crimes and recidivism rates,” said Assemblymember Jones-Sawyer. “Assembly Bill (AB) 484 does not eliminate the option for judges to order 180 days in jail. Instead, it allows the courts to better operate in the interest of justice by creating more flexibility to tailor sentences according to the facts of an individual’s case."
AB 484 does not take away a judge’s authority to order the 180-days in jail time. Instead, it eliminates an arbitrary requirement and creates more flexibility, ensuring that the courts can better tailor sentences to an individual’s case and the circumstances surrounding it.
AB 484 now heads to the State Senate.
Assemblymember Reginald Byron Jones-Sawyer, Sr. represents South Los Angeles, Florence-Firestone, Walnut Park, and a portion of Huntington Park. For more information about Assemblymember Jones-Sawyer, Sr., please visit https://a57.asmdc.org/