-Caveat Lector- Scholars Dispute Justice Report on Drug Prison Terms The Justice Department yesterday said changes in federal laws over the past two decades have led to longer prison sentences for those convicted on drug charges, but two university professors say average prison terms have decreased "steadily and dramatically" since 1991. The Justice Department reported that changes in federal statutes during the 1980s and 1990s had a "substantial effect on the processing of defendants convicted in federal courts -- especially drug law offenders." The department said that between 1986 and 1999, average prison terms imposed on drug offenders had increased from 62 months to 74 months and that the average term drug offenders could expect to serve rose from 30 months to 66 months. In its report, the Justice Department also said more than 38,000 people were referred to federal prosecutors for suspected drug offenses during 1999 -- the latest figures available and that 84 percent of them subsequently were charged in a federal court. However, law professors Frank O. Bowman III at Indiana University and Michael Heise at Case Western Reserve University said the Justice Department report released yesterday "creates an entirely misleading impression about the current state of federal drug sentencing." Mr. Bowman and Mr. Heise, whose study of drug sentencing is outlined in a 93-page report, said federal drug sentences have steadily been declining for nearly a decade. "The data is quite uniform and I don't think it really is disputable," Mr. Bowman, a former prosecutor, said during a telephone interview from his office at Indiana University School of Law. "I am not suspicious that the department is trying to mislead anyone, but there is no question the length of drug sentences has declined steadily since 1991." ...more - By Jerry Seper THE WASHINGTON TIMES <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/";>www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance�not soap-boxing�please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'�with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds�is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html <A HREF="http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html";>Archives of [EMAIL PROTECTED]</A> http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ <A HREF="http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/";>ctrl</A> ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
