Written by Abe Mamet
The Washington Post published a piece, “Believe it or not, it was a pretty good night for criminal-justice reform.” It is Nov. 11 and old-school news media are trying to drive up hits, giving readers what they want – in this case, a headline which makes the blow seem soft, and the night seem cautiously optimistic.
The death penalty was reaffirmed, and restrengthened, in three states on Nov. 8: Oklahoma, Nebraska, and California. California voted in Prop. 66 and voted out Prop. 62, effectively balking at a chance to end the death penalty for good there while embracing the chance to expedite the death penalty.
California has nearly 800 people on death row, which is essentially one-third of the country’s death row population. That’s 800 people who are all on track to be killed quicker and more brutally by their government.
Arizona voted to retain Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery, who has “been focused on [prosecuting marijuana] to the apparent exclusion of everything else in his administration,” according to The Nation. Arizona then proceeded to vote no on Proposition 205, ensuring, at least for the short while, that Montgomery can continue to profit from the illegal status of marijuana. His office has already collected 15 million dollars from sending people to mandatory, private, drug treatment.
Amidst these setbacks there was some progress. Arizona fired sheriff Joe Arpaio. Texas, Alabama, Florida, New Mexico, and Colorado all elected new, reform-oriented District Attorneys. California expanded parole. Oklahoma reclassified some crimes from felonies to misdemeanors. New Mexico passed weak bail reform, and pot measures passed in 8 out of 9 states, becoming outright legalized in three.
Trump’s presidency will result in more people getting arrested, tried, and incarcerated and more institutions of confinement will be constructed. Private prisons stocks have risen since Tuesday, indicating that more will emerge. More Americans will be executed via the death penalty and police brutality will continue unchecked.
Obama’s executive orders will be overturned, meaning that the ban on juvenile solitary confinement will be undone and a mandatory check box on federal job applications that asks for a criminal record will be implemented.
Not finally, there are absolutely dim chances for the hundreds of thousands of innocent incarcerated people that are waiting desperately for any sort of retroactive justice to manifest
Trump’s likely attorney general Rudy Giuliani, and secretary of Homeland Security Milwaukee Sheriff David Clarke, who has called Planned Parenthood “Planned Genocide”, Black Lives Matter “Black Lies Matter”, and who has told Al Sharpton to “go back to the gutter” will further exacerbate criminal justice inequalities.
There is a scenario where Trump will be able to appoint more than one judge. In addition to the current vacant spot, there are three judges that are quite old. Ruth Bader Ginsburg is 83 years old, Anthony Kennedy is 80, and Stephen Breyer is 78. These elderly judges and consequent appointments will leave a young, 7-2 conservative court to rule America. The lower courts are, for now, largely liberal, over time Trump will also get to fill those seats.
This seems like a bleak outlook. A bleak analysis. But this impending reality is one of discomfort for many, and extreme discomfort, and death, for all too many, most of whom will be people of color and immigrants. This right now is the truth in America, and will be for a while. It is destructive to claim that the election was “surprisingly good” for criminal justice reform. Do not rest easy, thinking that some magic has occurred that reformed American criminality and mass incarceration.