Justice is blind. Or at least she wears a blindfold on all those statues in courthouses across America. Justice is supposed to rule without fear or favor, to make no distinctions of race or class. But now judges are being asked not only to close their eyes, but to sit on their hands when it comes to sentencing.
Tough-on-crime lawmakers are imposing more and more mandatory minimums. And so today, if someone is found guilty in federal court of possessing five grams of crack cocaine (that’s the amount in a sugar packet), he or she gets five years. No exceptions. But sometimes, say judges, there need to be exceptions. That is why those statues carry scales. Now some judges accuse Congress of tipping the balance of power.
Guests:
The Hon. John S. Martin Jr., U.S. District Judge
U. S. Rep. Tom Feeney (D-FL).