Judge Alexander Williams Jr., interviewed Steve Mercer recently on the podcast Perspectives on Justice about parole, pardons, and commutations. Here is an excerpt in which Steve discusses an issue that is profoundly troubling: The irrational failure of the criminal...
“The Defense Never Rests.”
Justice
Governor Hogan Orders Expedited Release and Parole Consideration of Certain Inmates in Response to Coronavirus (COVID-19) in State Prisons and Local Jails
On April 18, 2020, Governor Hogan issued an Order “Implementing Alternative Correctional Detention and Supervision” related to the COVID-19 crisis in the Department of Corrections. The Governor’s Order provides certain inmates with (1) expedited release; (2) expedited...
How to Spot an Illegal Sentence for Felony Theft After the Justice Reinvestment Act
In 2016, the Legislature enacted the Justice Reinvestment Act, 2016 Md. Laws Ch. 515, SB 1005, (“JRA”) which, among other criminal justice reforms, reduced the ten (10) year maximum penalty for the non-violent offense of felony theft to five (5) years. The JRA also...