Since the rockefeller drug laws were passed in 1973 under governor nelson rockefeller, new york state has had the harshest sentencing for lowlevel, nonviolent drug. Rockefeller drug laws transforming drug laws in the. This law has become an issue of debate for the politicians as being the cruelest form of punishment. Critics say rockefeller drug laws pack the prisons, force. Nelson rockefeller passed a series of drug laws that mandated. Many in the opposition think that the rockefeller drug law has not been taken. It is a pleasure to appear before this panel to formalize. Rockefeller demanded tough prison sentences, even for. In 1973, two years after president nixon declared a war on drugs, new york gov. The passage of these harsh penalties made new york the toughest drug laws in the country. The lawsare named after nelson rockefeller, who was the states governor at the time the laws were adopted. In the early 1970s, in the throes of a heroin epidemic and rising murder rates, along with president richard nixon declaring a war on drugs, new york governor nelson rockefeller campaigned to get tough on drug dealers and addicts by introducing mandatory sentences of 15 years to life. John dunne, the former republican senator and original sponsor of the rockefeller drug laws, has said, the rockefeller drug laws have failed to achieve their goals. Commission must reform inhumane drug laws new york civil.
The rockefeller drug laws now 28 years old are amongst the toughest in the country. Often seen as a political sop to the racial fears of white voters, aggressive policing and draconian sentencing for illegal drug possession and related crimes have led to the imprisonment of millions of african americans. Congress compounded the inequity by making crack cocaine the only drug that. Known as the rockefeller drug laws, the penalty for selling two ounces 57 g or more of heroin, morphine, opium, cocaine, or cannabis or possessing four ounces 1 g or more of the same substances, was a minimum of 15 years to life in prison, and a maximum of 25 years to life in prison. The war on drugs is now 30, 40 years old, holder told npr. The rockefeller drug laws in many ways have become crueler than the. The crack epidemic had particularly devastating effects. The felony d drug charge carries a maximum penalty of twoandahalf years. The drug laws that changed how we punish forty years ago, new york enacted tough laws in response to a wave of drugrelated crime. Crack epidemic, the significant increase in the use of crack cocaine, or crack, in the united states during the early 1980s.
Rockefeller drug laws 20 years later before a hearing convened by the assembly committee on codes. Many prominent new yorkers who were early supporters of the harsh penalties prescribed by the rockefeller drug laws have renounced their support for those laws. In spite of continued criticism, the tough on crime mentality underlying many political decisions allowed the rockefeller drug laws to remain essentially unchanged for the next 20 years. Cities, national institute of justice and the office of national drug control policy. Congress to remedy racebased disparities for cocaine and crack sentencing. They failed to prevent new york city from becoming the epicenter of the american crack epidemic in the early 90s when drug use, drug trafficking and violent crime rates reached record levels. With the enactment of the rockefeller drug laws the state of new york elected to subvert judicial fairness and to subvert the constitutional right to a fair trial. How the rockefeller drug laws changed america ncpr news. Under the rockefeller drug laws, the penalty for selling two ounces 57 g or more of heroin, morphine, raw or prepared opium, cocaine, or cannabis or possessing four ounces 1 g or more of the same substances, was a minimum of 15 years to life in prison, and a maximum of 25 years to life in prison. The rockefeller drug laws, named after new yorks governor nelson rockefeller, were a set of laws enacted in 1973 that imposed the nations harshest penalties for the sale, possession, and use of illegal drugs. Rockefeller, a staunch supporter of the bill containing the laws, had presidential ambitions and so.
Crack cocaine first hit the national radar in 1986 but, contrary to media reports, it was not a new drug. The rockefeller drug laws the blanch law firmcriminal drug. Crack epidemic united states history 1980s britannica. Rockefeller drug laws cause racial disparities, huge. Under the rockefeller drug laws, the penalty for selling two ounces 57 g or more of heroin, morphine. It is simmons who has led opposition to draconian rockefeller drug law that has had such a disparate impact on poor blacks. A brief history of new york state drug laws law offices. Drug laws have undergone some significant changes within the past few decades. The laws went unchanged until 1988, when concern over crack cocaine led to a lowering of the weight threshold for cocaine possession. Crack cocaine was popularized because of its affordability, its immediate euphoric effect, and its high profitability. He surmised, only time will tell how effective this tough anti drug law will be in decreasing the drug problem in the state of new york. After a 36year legal tugofwar new yorks drug laws are seeing their most. Quartararo was charged with fifthdegree drug possession, a felony, and loitering to buy drugs, a violation.
Neither heroin use nor drugrelated crime declined in new york state. That year, national news outlets began reporting inflammatory anecdotes supposedly revealing a crack epidemic. Laws that were supposed to focus federal efforts on locking up drug. In the 1980s, sales of crack cocaine exploded, as did the amount of federal. The rockefeller laws, which require sentences as high as 15 years to life, have packed the states prisons with tens of thousands of drug felons and added hundreds of millions of dollars to annual. And before her, governor patakis former rockefeller drug law spokesperson who was busted for buying crack cocaine and sentenced to a 250dollar fine and treatment we have to think about the concept of redemption and compassion for all. But a new debate is under way over the effectiveness of such strict sentencing laws. To get a comparable sentence, a dealer selling powdered cocaine. Forty years ago this month, new york governor nelson rockefeller launched his campaign for what came to be known as the rockefeller drug laws. The rockefeller drug laws rdls were two sets of laws that were passed on may 8, 1973. The video traces the drug war from president nixon to the draconian rockefeller drug laws to the emerging aboveground marijuana market that is.
The rockefeller drug laws have remained essentially unchanged since then. Ten years ago, new york started dialing back the war on drugs. The rockefeller drug laws are the statutes dealing with the sale and possession of narcotic drugs in the new york state penal law. Dominicans provided methods for the conversion of cocaine to crack. The laws are named after nelson rockefeller, who was the states governor at the time the laws were adopted. This includes battling the draconian rockefeller drug laws, which incarcerate a majority of blacks excessively long sentences. It is simmons who has led opposition to the draconian rockefeller drug law that has had such a disparate impact on poor blacks. Rockefeller drug laws and drug law reform robert d. A rockefeller drug law is nothing but a term referred by the new york penal law under the section of article 220 for the possessing and selling of narcotic drugs. But by the early 70s, attitudes about drugs and crime were changing fast. I would give clinton the benefit of the doubt and welcome him to tackle the tough drug policy issues that exist. If you didnt have the rockefeller drug laws, youd probably have a greater number of drug cases going to trial, and you might have gridlock in the courts. This video from hip hop legend shawn jay z carter and acclaimed artist molly crabapple depicts the drug wars devastating impact on the black community from decades of biased law enforcement. The drug laws that changed how we punish forty years ago, new york enacted tough laws in response to a wave of drug related crime.
New yorks rockefeller drug laws, physicians for human rights and the fortune society. The laws almost immediately led to an increase in drug convictions, but no measurable decrease in overall crime. Video of anthony papa drug war activist bashing governor pataki for his watered down reform of new yorks racist drug laws which incarcerate thousands of. Caroline quartararo, a former spokeswoman on rockefeller drug law reform for governor pataki was arrested on december 20th for possessing three rocks of crack cocaine. A comprehensive examination of the 100to1 crack versus powder cocaine.
As a former prisoner who received a 15tolife sentence under new yorks rockefeller drug laws, i know firsthand the reality of being sentenced under mandatory minimum sentencing laws. Of the 51,744 inmates currently held under the department of. An analysis of drug treatment courts in new york state. The history of these laws is rich and full of controversy. In 1988 the democratic congress passed the rockefeller drug law. This year, our prison time media project is spending the 40th anniversary of passage of the rockefeller drug laws looking indepth at how those toughoncrime policies changed america. Nelson rockefeller r, the laws are some of the toughest in the nation and have served as a model for tough on crime legislation across the country in the years since then. As state leaders close in on an agreement to repeal the rockefeller drug laws, takes a closer look at the legislation. Their expressed intent was to deter the sale or use of such drugs. A brief history of new yorks rockefeller drug laws time. This law gave an additional five years for people who sold crack then those that sold powder cocaine.
The new york assembly wednesday passed a bill that would repeal much of the states draconian rockefeller drug laws. Although the draconian rockefeller drug laws have been reformed in recent years and the prison population has declined somewhat from an alltime high of 95,000 at the end of 2006 to just over 81,000 at the end of june there are still more than 10,000 people serving prison time for drug offenses, or, as credico notes, more than there were. By the mid1980s, spiraling rates of crack cocaine use combined with some. The futility and destructiveness of prohibition, 1983 wis. Nelson rockefeller and the rockefeller drug laws 2314. Under one law, people convicted of a class ai drug felony selling two ounces of certain drugs, such as cocaine or heroin, or possessing four ounces of the same drugs had to receive a sentence of at least 15 years to life, and people convicted of. By the mid 1980s, spiraling rates of crack cocaine use combined with some. Under the rockefeller drug laws, an individual faced a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison for possessing 4 ounces or selling 2 ounces of heroin, morphine, opium, cocaine, or marijuana. The 25th anniversary of the signing of the socalled rockefeller drug laws, which falls on may 8, has reinvigorated the debate over the fate of inmates like. Schedule 1 contains drugs such as marijuana, ecstasy, lsd and heroin, considered the most harmful and. It will take a very large financial commitment to give the criminal justice system the tools it needs for a fair shot at success in the battle against crack. They became known as the rockefeller drug laws, and they set the standard for states looking to get tough on crime. President obama signed the fair sentencing act of 2010, doing away with the fiveyear mandatory minimum for possession of five grams of crack cocaine, and.
The changing racial dynamics of the war on drugs marc mauer april 2009. For over 25 years, many politicians, including the late senator ted kennedy, fought to redress the imbalance between federally mandated sentences for possession of crack cocaine and the powder form of the drug. In 1988, concern over crack cocaine led to a lowering of the weight threshold for cocaine possession to enable the arrest and prosecution of people possessing small amounts of the drug. The rockefeller drug laws and the politics of punishment michael javen fortner on. Rockefeller drug laws challenged new york post youtube. Your criminal defense in new york as a first time offender by jeremy saland criminal possession of a controlled substancecriminal sale of a controlled substanceheroin, crack cocaine and cocaine note that marijuana is not a controlled substance crime. For the application of this law invariably results in longer sentences for the small amount of crack cocaine that blacks usually possess than for a much larger amount of powder cocaine that whites usually possess. Out of the 12,000 or so drug prisoners in the state of new york, 91 percent are black and latino. This law resulted in millions of young men from our communities being locked up for years. Nelson rockefeller passed the toughest drug laws in. At the state level, the most longstanding of the current generation of harsh drug laws are new yorks rockefeller drug laws.
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