User:Aicjulial/sandbox

Background
Right on Crime was created in Texas in 2007 through a campaign by the Texas Public Policy Foundation and in partnership with the American Conservative Union Foundation and Prison Fellowship. Right on Crime's website claims to have 18 policy analysts, researchers, and law experts. They have helped create reform in 38 states through activities such as “...pass[ing] comprehensive juvenile justice reform bills… clos[ing] prisons, and divert[ing] savings back to the taxpayers and to recidivism-reducing programs.”

Marc Levin founded Right on Crime in 2010 and helped shift the conservative “tough on crime” approach that seeks to expand the criminal justice system into a fiscal conservative approach. He currently serves as the Vice President of Right on Crime and the Texas Public Policy Foundation. Other Right on Crime supporters include Newt Gingrich, Pat Nolan, Jeb Bush, Rick Perry, and more. Regarding recidivism rates, Newt Gingrich and Mark Earley have said, “[i]f two-thirds of public school students dropped out, or two-thirds of all bridges built collapsed within three years, would citizens tolerate it?” They seek to problematize the nation's high recidivism rate and contextualize the problem's magnitude. Right on Crime also has partnerships with the Coalition for Public Safety, which contains both progressive and conservative groups that have a common goal of making the criminal justice system fairer and more cost effective. This Koch Industries funded organization works to create criminal justice reforms that reduce incarceration rates and end over criminalization and have obtained over $5 million in funding.

Statement of Principles
Right on Crime’s Statement of Principles has been signed by over 70 conservative leaders. It advocates for cost-effective approaches to criminal justice spending, striving to “produce the best possible results at the lowest possible cost.” The statement describes how the current criminal justice system does not work for every offender and may in fact be counterproductive by hardening low-risk offenders. The organization believes that safety is the government’s core responsibility, but also describes the importance of upholding conservative values such as a constitutionally limited government. Other values include "...transparency, individual liberty, personal responsibility, free enterprise, and the centrality of the family and community."

The organization’s principles describe how the criminal justice system should lower crime rates, collect victim restitution, and reduce taxpayer spending. It describes how the key “consumers” of the criminal justice system, which include the public, victims, and taxpayers, should have a voice in defining justice. They state how the system should reform criminals who will return to society and contribute positively to their communities. Overall, the principles describe how the system should strive to reach all of these goals without expanding governmental power or limiting economic freedom.

Political Activity
Right on Crime supported the First Step Act and cosigned its endorsement letter to Congress, along with 41 other organizations. The act includes programming to reduce recidivism and lower mandatory minimums. The First Step Act was approved on December 18, 2018 in a 87 to 12 vote through the Senate. Right on Crime signatory Ken Cuccinelli states that “these common-sense reforms will improve public safety by reducing recidivism and provide a second chance to those who have served their time and who want to live law-abiding, productive lives.”

Right on Crime has also written a letter to the House of Representatives supporting the SAFE Justice Act. They claim that the act will help increase public safety while reducing taxpayer costs. They advocate for alternatives such as shorter sentences and community supervision.

In North Carolina, Right on Crime advocated for raising the age of jurisdiction in the juvenile justice system. Regarding juvenile justice reform, Marc Levin states that lowering short-term costs through larger caseloads and less programs “...contribute to higher rates of recidivism and revocations among 16- and 17-year-olds, leading to higher long-term overall costs.” In a press release by the John Locke foundation, he discusses how sending youth to prison withholds them from reformative programs that could reduce recidivism in the future, incurring in higher overall costs.

Statewide reforms supported by Right on Crime have also been made in Texas, Louisiana , Maryland , Oregon and others. Some examples include:


 * South Carolina (2010): corrections policy reform that diverts nonviolent offenders to community programs instead of prison.
 * Kentucky (2011): passed the Public Safety and Accountability Act, redirecting minor drug offenders from prison to probation.
 * Georgia (2012): reform for community supervision alternatives for low-level offenders.