FIRST STEP’s first deception exposed

[Valin]

Power Line

Paul Mirengoff

July 27, 2019

When the FIRST STEP act was making its way through Congress, its advocates claimed that only “non-violent” federal prisoners would be released from prison early. By non-violent felons they meant, in essence, drug dealers, as opposed to, say, murderers, rapists, and armed robbers.

I don’t consider dealers of deadly drugs to be non-violent. Their conduct wrecks lives and sometimes ends them.

But let’s accept, for purposes of discussion, the definition of “non-violent” advanced by FIRST STEP’s advocates. Contrary to what they promised, their law is letting violent offenders out of prison early.

Tucker Carlson blew the whistle this week, aided by information provided to him from inside the White House, apparently. He reported that, of the 2,000 or so federal prisoners who have been released early thanks to FIRST STEP, roughly half had committed violent felonies under any fair reckoning.

This includes around 500 inmates who were incarcerated on weapons or explosive charges; around 300 who committed rape or sexual assault; around 100 guilty of armed robbery; and several dozen guilty of aggravated assault or murder.

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