Renewed War on Drugs, harsher charging policies, stepped-up criminalization of immigrants — in the current climate, joining the NACDL is more important than ever. Members of NACDL help to support the only national organization working at all levels of government to ensure that the voice of the defense bar is heard.
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NACDL is committed to enhancing the capacity of the criminal defense bar to safeguard fundamental constitutional rights.
NACDL harnesses the unique perspectives of NACDL members to advocate for policy and practice improvements in the criminal legal system.
NACDL envisions a society where all individuals receive fair, rational, and humane treatment within the criminal legal system.
NACDL’s mission is to serve as a leader, alongside diverse coalitions, in identifying and reforming flaws and inequities in the criminal legal system, and redressing systemic racism, and ensuring that its members and others in the criminal defense bar are fully equipped to serve all accused persons at the highest level.
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Written Statement of Steven D. Benjamin, President National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers Before the House Committee on the Judiciary Over-Criminalization Task Force Re: “Defining the Problem and Scope of Over-criminalization and Over-federalization”
Written Statement of Bryan A. Stevenson, Founder and Executive Director Equal Justice Initiative and Professor of Clinical Law New York University School of Law Before the House Committee on the Judiciary Over-Criminalization Task Force Re: “Penalties”
Written Statement of William G. Otis, Adjunct Professor of Law Georgetown University Law Center Before the House Committee on the Judiciary Over-Criminalization Task Force Re: “Penalties”
Written Statement of Marc Levin, Policy Director Right on Crime Before the House Committee on the Judiciary Over-Criminalization Task Force Re: “Penalties”
Written Statement of Eric Evenson, National Association of Assistant United States Attorneys Before the House Committee on the Judiciary Over-Criminalization Task Force Re: “Penalties”
Testimony of Chief Judge Patti B. Saris Chair, United States Sentencing Commission For the Hearing on “Agency Perspectives” Before the Over-Criminalization Task Force of the Committee on the Judiciary United States House of Representatives
Statement Of Judge Irene M. Keeley, United States District Judge Judicial Conference of the United States Before the Committee on the Judiciary Over-Criminalization Task Force United States House of Representatives at a Hearing Entitled “Agency Perspectives”
Ending mass incarceration will require changing sentencing policies and practices. But where are we now and what impact will COVID-19 have? Learn about varies state sentencing reform efforts, as well as release options during the COVID-19 pandemic and what states can do moving forward as a result of the pandemic.
NACDL's 19th Annual State Criminal Justice Network Conference August 17-19, 2020 | Held Virtually
NACDL, with its diverse membership of 10,000 spanning state, federal, and military practice, wishes to express its views on preferred Commission priorities. We concur with other advocates and stakeholders that current sentences are excessively long, and certain sentencing factors disproportionately affect racial minorities within the criminal legal system. Whatever issues the Commission determines to prioritize, these flaws should be foremost in considering potential amendments.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and NACDL filed a lawsuit under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) seeking public records detailing the Department of Justice’s implementation of December 2022 memoranda establishing new policies for all federal prosecutors’ charging and sentencing practices.
The undersigned national, state, and local public health and criminal justice reform organizations write today to urge you to reject and vote NO on the Halt All Lethal Trafficking of Fentanyl (HALT) Act (H.R. 467). This bill permanently schedules fentanyl-related substances (FRS) on schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) based on a 2 flawed class definition, imposes mandatory minimums, and fails to provide an offramp for removing inert or harmless substances from the drug schedule.
Federal White Collar and Related Mandatory Minimums. This list includes all federal (not state) white collar and related offenses with penalty provisions that require the judge to sentence a defendant to a mandatory minimum prison term. Laws that require the judge to impose only a minimum fine, a period of supervised release, or an undefined term of imprisonment are not included in this list. This list includes only the laws in effect as of June 23, 2010.
NACDL supports legislation to reduce the number of mandatory minimum laws and restore judicial discretion in sentencing.
Letter to New York Governor Kathy Hochul in support of legislative efforts in New York that seek to abolish mandatory minimums, allow judges to reconsider excessive sentences after a specified amount of time, and strengthen "good time" and "merit time" laws in order to mitigate the drivers and consequences of the trial penalty.
NACDL worked with the Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers of New Jersey (ADCL-NJ) to advocate for the repeal mandatory minimums in New Jersey.
