Washington, DC – Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, a senior member of the House Committees on Homeland Security and Judiciary, and Ranking Member of the Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security and Investigations, issued the following statement about the Attorney General’s memo reinstating arcane mandatory sentencing guidelines:

“As elected members of Congress, it is our responsibility to ensure the safety and security of the American people. I for one have worked extensively and effectively with Federal and local law enforcement. FBI crime statistics show overall crime continuing to decrease in America, down 0.7 percent over the last five years under policies largely enforced by the Department of Justice under former Attorney General Eric Holder.

“But this new policy of Attorney General Jeff Sessions heads us in the wrong direction at the wrong time. The law and order dominance of both the President and Mr. Sessions has the very real potential of leading to extensive discrimination and massive incarceration.

“Once again, Attorney General Jeff Sessions has proven to be out of touch with the American people subjected to the purview of the office he now holds. He lacks appreciation for the severe inequities caused by mandatory minimum sentences; and has a complete disregard for the significant impact that criminal charges alone have on a suspect and their respective communities.

“Sessions’ memo issued this morning rescinds former Attorney General Holder’s May 19, 2010 and August 12, 2013 memos regarding DOJ’s policy on charging and sentencing decisions. The “Holder Memos” expressly supersedes the “Ashcroft Memo” by scaling back Ashcroft’s mandatory language, which required federal prosecutors to charge and pursue the most serious, readily provable offenses supported by the facts of a case, thereby eliminating prosecutorial discretion. This is precisely what Jeff Sessions now seeks to do in this memo, rather than the continual practical, equitable and cost-efficient approach implemented under Holder.

“The Ashcroft Memo stated; “lesser offenses should only be charged in rare circumstances when necessary to obtain substantial assistance in an important investigation or prosecution.” This was bad policy then and it bad policy now. In contrast, the Holder Memo requires an individualized assessment to ensure fair charges; consistency with the purpose of the federal criminal laws, and preservation of federal resources. The individualized assessment approach under Holder creates an important discretion over charging decisions, which has always been an integral feature of both the federal prosecutor and the criminal justice system.

“Unfortunately, Sessions’ approach as outlined in his memo this morning will take us back – creating unduly harsh consequences when they are not justified and further adding to our problems of over-criminalization and mass incarceration. As Ranking Member of the Judiciary Crime Subcommittee, I support a forward and equitable approach in our criminal justice system and vehemently oppose Attorney General’s archaic and counterproductive approach.”