... Take the case of Weldon Angelos -- a middle-class 25-year-old from Salt Lake City -- convicted for the first time and sentenced for selling small amounts of marijuana on three occasions. The judge gave him just one day in prison for the marijuana, but added a mandated 55 years to the sentence because on the three occasions, Angelos allegedly carried a pistol while he made the sales.
Twenty-nine former federal judges, attorneys general and U.S. attorneys filed a friend-of-the-court brief on behalf of Angelos, arguing that his sentence violated the Eighth Amendment's ban on cruel and unusual punishment. "A terrorist who detonates a bomb in a public place intending to kill a bystander will serve a prison sentence of no more than 235 months . . . . A second-degree murderer will serve a prison sentence of no more than 168 months . . . . A rapist will serve a prison term of no more than 87 months." They argued that Angelos's 660-month sentence is unconstitutional "because (a) it is grossly disproportionate to the offenses that Angelos committed and (b) it is contrary to the evolving standards of decency which are the hallmark of our civilized society."
Harsh sentences are appropriate for violent criminals and drug kingpins, but Angelos and others like him are filling prisons at considerable expense to taxpayers. According to the Bureau of Prisons, more than half of the 180,000-plus people in federal institutions are there for drug law violations. Most are low-level, small-time and nonviolent offenders. These defendants and we taxpayers would be better served by placing many low-level offenders under community supervision and treatment. Federal incarceration costs taxpayers $26,696 per inmate each year, or $4 billion annually.
By Barry C. Scheck, Tuesday, December 7, 2004 © The Washington Post Company
