Durbin Commends President for Commuting Sentences of 95 Nonviolent Drug Offenders

Press Release

U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), sponsor of the Fair Sentencing Act and the Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act, commended President Obama today for commuting the sentences of 95 Americans, including Alton Mills and eight other Illinoisans. After learning of Mr. Mills' story and meeting with his family and attorney, Durbin wrote President Obama in support of Mr. Mills' petition for commutation of his sentence earlier this month. Mr. Mills has served 22 years of a mandatory life sentence for a nonviolent drug offense.

"An overlooked casualty in our "war on drugs' are the men and women who have been convicted under disproportionately harsh mandatory minimum sentencing laws. These people, like Illinoisan Alton Mills, are victims of some of the most egregious inequities in our criminal justice system," Durbin said. "I am very glad to see President Obama take action today to give 95 Americans a second chance. As we move forward with criminal justice reform in Congress, I urge the President to continue using the clemency process to improve the fairness of our criminal justice system."

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