Governor Larry Hogan Signs Comprehensive Criminal Justice Reform Into Law
May 19, 2016
Justice Reinvestment Act Will Strengthen Maryland’s Communities and Its Criminal Justice System
ANNAPOLIS, MD – Governor Larry Hogan today signed into law Senate Bill 1005, the Justice Reinvestment Act, a comprehensive criminal justice reform package that will enable Maryland to better protect communities, restore families, and move the State’s economy forward.
“Today we signed the largest, most comprehensive criminal justice reform to pass in Maryland in a generation,” said Governor Hogan. “This legislation strikes a balance between our most important duty of protecting public safety and the cost savings that result from a more efficient criminal justice system.”
“By supporting the Justice Reinvestment Act, Governor Hogan has shown leadership on securing better outcomes for taxpayer spending, and most importantly, better outcomes for the safety of our communities,” said Christopher B. Shank, chair of the Justice Reinvestment Coordinating Council. “The legislation prioritizes treatment for those struggling with addiction while providing us with additional tools to prosecute and hold accountable violent offenders and drug traffickers.”
“The Justice Reinvestment Act’s emphasis on evidence-based practices will result in better outcomes for our programs, for our communities, and for individuals who come into contact with the system,” said V. Glenn Fueston Jr., executive director of the Governor’s Office of Crime Control & Prevention. “Additionally, the Act takes steps to elevate the voices of those victimized by crime, creating opportunities to help make them whole again.”
The legislation, which garnered wide, bipartisan support from the General Assembly, is the product of more than a year of discussion and research. In 2015, the General Assembly passed, and Governor Hogan supported and signed into law, legislation to establish the Justice Reinvestment Coordinating Council, a bipartisan group representing all three branches of state government as well as a wide array of criminal justice stakeholders. The Council met regularly over a six-month period to develop a series of data-driven recommendations that formed the basis of the Justice Reinvestment Act.
The Council received technical assistance from the Pew Charitable Trusts and its partner, the Crime and Justice Institute at Community Resources for Justice.
A copy of the bill signed today is available here.