A Pound of Flesh: The Psychological, Familial and Social Consequences of Mandatory Long-Term Sentencing Laws for Drug Offenses

Abstract

ABSTRACT Since the 1970s individual states in the United States have enacted mandatory long-term sentencing laws for drug offenses. These laws resulted in a 12-fold increase in prison population. The majority of people sentenced under these laws are nonviolent, first-time felony offenders with no or minimal drug use history. Based on open-ended qualitative interviews with 12 formerly incarcerated men and women sentenced for 15–20 years under these laws, the author describes the psychological, familial and social consequences of these mandatory long-term sentencing laws for drug offenses.