For most of our country's history, crime control was determined at local and state levels. Aside from treason, counterfeiting, bribery of federal officials, perjury, postal and tax laws, there weren't many federalized crimes or federal prisoners. Only crimes that affected the federal government's area of unique service and governance were made "federal law." It stayed that way (more or less) for over 130 years until a foray into alcohol prohibition (1920-1933). The 'failed social experiment' pushed state and federal prisons into a state of hyper-imprisonment and prison over-crowding. After prohibition ended, the federal prison population stabilized and held steady for 40 years.
What we call the Civil Rights Movement today, was called 'civil unrest' by authorities. In November 1968 Richard Nixon claimed the first presidential victory on a 'law and order' platform. Before Nixon could get 'tough on crime' he was accused of crimes and resigned. Early in his presidency, however, he supported authorization of the Law Enforcement Assistance Administration (LEAA). LEAA was to police and corrections, what the pentagon is to the military. While laws didn't change drastically, part of LEAA's work was to fund efforts that would make the public receptive to federalization of crime.
A decade after Nixon resigned in disgrace, Ronald Reagan took office and by that time every politician in Congress knew 'tough on crime and criminals' was the bandwagon to be on. When the Sentencing Reform Act (SRA) flew through Congress in 1984, the task of creating a federal criminal justice system, unfettered by legal tenets of old, fell to a newly appointed United States Sentencing Commission. The Commission would take on far more than sentencing matters, was divided, hurried and a draft became law.
Through the 1990's militarization of domestic policing continued. The use of secret policing through rewarded informants, coupled with intensified public surveillance, were all acceptable practices of the War on Drugs.* Within the first decade of implementation, the conservative Hoover Institute bemoaned the federalization of 'crime.'
"Today there are more than three thousand federal crimes on the books. Hardly any crime, no matter how local in nature, is beyond the jurisdiction of federal law enforcement authorities. Federal crimes now range from serious but purely local offenses such as car jacking and church burning to trivial matters such as disrupting a rodeo or damaging a livestock facility. In 1994, one crime bill alone created two dozen new federal offenses." (Ed Meese III, The Dangerous Federalization of Crime, 1999)
The SRA federalized drug and firearms' offenses, abolished parole, and replaced the system of sentencing that involved judge, correctional officers and the federal parole board. The new federal criminal justice system consolidated investigatory, charging and sentencing power into the hands of prosecutors. Prison became a first choice, not a last resort, and nonviolent drug offenders have made up the bulk of federal prisoners for almost twenty years.
By mid-year 2008, the Federal Bureau of Prisons held over 201,000 people in custody, operating at 37% above capacity. Nonviolent drug offenders make up 54% of the federal prison population. November Coalition has advocated for a return to federal parole, increases in the current good-time provision, and welcomes other ideas to make our country safer, not simply less-free.
These graphs and more are available at www.november.org/graphs
