Governor Murphy, Senate President Sweeney, and Speaker Coughlin Endorse Initial Recommendations of Criminal Sentencing and Disposition Commission

Governor Phil Murphy, joined by Attorney General Gurbir Grewal, former Chief Justice Deborah Poritz, Senate President Steve Sweeney, Speaker Craig Coughlin, Senator Sandra Cunningham, Senator Nellie Pou, former President of the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives Jiles Ship, and Acting Commissioner of Corrections Marcus Hicks, announced that he is endorsing the first set of recommendations issued by the Criminal Sentencing and Disposition Commission, which the Governor convened last year after nearly a decade of dormancy. Among other reforms, the bipartisan Commission called for the elimination of mandatory minimum sentences for non-violent drug crimes and non-violent property crimes.  

“The Commission’s comprehensive recommendations are a critical step toward eliminating the racial disparities in our criminal justice system and ensuring a system that works better for all communities,” said Governor Murphy. “The Commission’s release of a report with unanimous support from across the ideological spectrum is a landmark achievement. I look forward to working with my partners in the Legislature to ensure that these reforms become law as soon as possible.”

“I would like to thank Chief Justice Poritz and Jiles Ship for the leadership they gave to this Commission,” said Lieutenant Governor Sheila Oliver. “Justice is not always equal. What we are doing today in New Jersey with the leadership of the Governor, our legislative leaders, and everyone standing here, we are going to make the scales a little more equal.”

“The men and women on this commission and those who worked with us are extraordinary people. I thought I had retired but I was wrong,” said Deborah Poritz, Former Chief Justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court. “Every once in a while, there is an opportunity to work with a group of talented, dedicated people, to do something that will make in a difference in people’s lives.”