Last month, Attorney General Jeff Sessions sent a memo to all federal prosecutors, with new directives for charging and sentencing in criminal cases. He’s directed federal prosecutors to charge defendants with the most severe penalties possible and pursue mandatory minimum sentences where they’re available. We’re headed back into the war on drugs from the 80s and 90s…a war that did not end drug use or make anyone safer. Instead it ripped apart families, packed American prisons and resulted in long sentences for a lot of non violent drug offenders. Everyone seemed to agree that it was a disaster. Hell, even the Koch brothers agreed.  During the Obama administration, there was bipartisan support for sentencing reform. And for the first time in decades, federal inmate numbers were down, and the Justice Dept made plans to stop sending inmates to private prisons.

But last month, Sessions decided to relaunch the war on drugs.

This is a show about a new dawn, a new day…crime and punishment in the Trump era.

Credits

This show is produced in collaboration with Seven Days. Click here for Mark Davis’ article on Jeff Sessions’ new charging directives.

Dan Sedon, Mark Kaplan, and Lisa Shelkrot are some of the smartest, most accomplished attorneys in Vermont. If ever you’re in trouble, I highly recommend calling one of them. You will be in excellent hands. For more information on each of them, click on their names below.

Dan Sedon, Esq., Sedon and Ericson, P.C., Chelsea, Vermont

Lisa Shelkrot, Esq., Langrock Sperry & Wool, Burlington, Vermont

Mark Kaplan, Esq., Kaplan and Kaplan, Burlington, Vermont

Music for this show is from Vermont musicians Peter Cressy, Brian Clark, and Mike Donofrio

Many thanks to Susan Randall, Mark Davis and former U.S. Attorney Charles Tetzlaff for their help on this show.