UNFAIRNESS OF CRACK COCAINE SENTENCES SHOULD BE FIXED

The nomination of Eric Holder as the next U.S. attorney general has
renewed concerns about the end-of-term clemencies granted by President
Clinton. High-profile names such as Marc Rich grabbed headlines at the
time. But many other people with no political influence benefited from
the president's mercy.

I am one of those people. If I had not received a commutation, my
first-time conviction for a non-violent offense would have kept me in
prison until 2016 (with good behavior) because of the harsh mandatory
sentencing laws for crack cocaine.

My 1994 prison sentence grew out of my boyfriend's trafficking in
crack. After he was murdered, the government charged me with
conspiracy to distribute the crack that his drug ring
distributed.

During my court hearings, prosecutors acknowledged that I never sold,
handled or used any of the drugs involved in the conspiracy.

Today, I could be in federal prison still serving my 24-year sentence.
Instead, I've been raising my now 13-year-old son, graduated from
college in 2002 and completed a year of law school. I own a home and
speak to youth about the importance of their choices and the
consequences that can affect their lives forever.

My own experience led me to create a non-profit foundation that
focuses on providing children of incarcerated parents with a mentor,
and collaborates with other organizations on justice-reform
initiatives.

My story of redemption does not need to be an anomaly.

Thousands of petitions for executive clemency are pending before
President Bush with a few weeks left in his term.

The majority of those are unknown to him or the public. Many are
people of color caught up in the war on drugs and serving long
mandatory-minimum sentences, often for low-level offenses. The
president should expedite such applications and grant them clemency.

The guidelines for the Office of the Pardon Attorney state that the
excessive nature of a sentence and associated sentencing disparity are
appropriate considerations when granting a petition for commutation.
The federal sentencing policy for crack cocaine offenses is a case in
point.

The mandatory five-year sentence for a defendant convicted with five
grams of crack cocaine - the weight of two sugar packets - is the same
as that for a defendant convicted with 100 times that amount of powder
cocaine, even though these are two forms of the same drug.

Defendants convicted with 50 grams of crack cocaine - about the weight
of a candy bar - receive a minimum sentence of 10 years. A powder
cocaine seller must have at least five kilograms to receive the same
sentence.

For decades, criminal justice experts, civil rights leaders and
lawmakers have called these sentences unjust. More than 80 percent of
people convicted of crack cocaine offenses are black, even though
two-thirds of crack cocaine users are white or Hispanic.

Indeed, President Bush raised concerns about the issue before taking
office, saying the crack-powder disparity "ought to be addressed by
making sure the powder-cocaine and the crack-cocaine penalties are the
same."

I agree, but despite significant changes made to the federal
sentencing guidelines for crack cocaine in the past year, the harsh
mandatory sentences remain.

The president still has time to make good on his promise. His clemency
power should be used with thoughtful deliberation. Even so, it should
be utilized because clemency is sometimes the only possible response
to unfair and excessive penalties.

Kemba Smith is founder of the Kemba Smith Foundation
(www.kembasmithfoundation.org). This commentary was distributed by the
American Forum, a nonprofit, nonpartisan, educational organization
that provides views of experts on major public concerns to stimulate
informed discussion.