SB-122 is a dangerous crime bill being pushed through the Maryland General Assembly that will use the most ineffective and expensive approach to reducing crime. It creates unnecessarily longer sentences and mandatory minimum sentences that will have a racially unfair impact on Black, Brown, and poor people in communities already targeted by over policing and mass incarceration. It will place a hefty cost on the backs of Maryland taxpayers, as it will greatly expand prison populations. Each Maryland prisoner costs $44,600 per year to incarcerate.

The House Judiciary Committee will be voting on this bill today, and it will head to the floor if it makes it out of committee.

While some of the sentence enhancements have been removed in the House version of the bill there is a significant risk they will come back if the House passes the bill and it is forced into reconciliation with the Senate bill.

The only way to ensure that those provisions are not included is to make sure the bill does not come out of the House of Delegates.

Some supporters of this bill are trying to add progressive legislation like parole reform, the DREAM act, or Law Enforcement Bill of Rights modifications. This is not a compromise, and is an attempt to divide and conquer. Those are all changes in law that are needed. However, implementing increased mandatory sentencing and taking power away from judges is counterproductive and at a great expense to the taxpayer. These are unacceptable compromises that do not change the negative impacts of this bill.

The Maryland Green Party has voted to oppose the bill. Taking a unanimous position, each of our General Assembly candidates are opposed to this election year ploy to impose counterproductive, expensive, and racially unfair crime legislation, especially given that mandatory minimums do not work.


ACTION

The Baltimore City Delegation has not officially weighed in on SB 122. There should be no movement on this bill until the delegation has officially weighed in.

1)Email and Call Curt Anderson ([email protected] / (410) 841-3291) and demand that a public vote be held of the Baltimore City Delegation on SB 122.

2)Call YOUR Delegate and tell them to vote no on SB 122.

3)If your delegate is on the House Judiciary Committee (listed below), call them and tell them not to let this bill come out of committee.

House Speaker Michael E. Busch
[email protected]
(301) 858-3800

Delegate Joseph F. Vallario, Jr. (Chair of House Judiciary Committee)
[email protected]
(301) 858-3488

Delegate Kathleen M. Dumais (Vice-Chair of House Judiciary Committee)
[email protected]
(301) 858-3052

Delegate Curt Anderson (Baltimore City)
[email protected]
(301) 858-3291

Delegate Vanessa E. Atterbeary (Howard County)
[email protected]
(301) 858-3471

Delegate Frank M. Conaway, Jr. (Baltimore City)
[email protected]
(301) 858-3189

Delegate Angela C. Gibson (Baltimore City)
[email protected]
(301) 858-3283

Delegate Jazz Lewis (Prince George's County)
[email protected]
(301) 858-3691

Delegate David Moon (Montgomery County)
[email protected]
(301) 858-3474

Delegate Dan K. Morhaim (Baltimore County)
[email protected]
(301) 858-3054

Delegate Susie Proctor (Prince George's & Charles Counties)
[email protected]
(301) 858-3083

Delegate Pam Queen (Montgomery County)
[email protected]
(301) 858-3380

Delegate Carlo Sanchez (Prince George's County)
[email protected]
(301) 858-3340

Delegate Charles E. Sydnor III (Baltimore County)
[email protected]
(301) 858-3802

Maryland Green Party General Assembly Candidates

House of Delegates District 7: Ryan Sullivan

House of Delegates District 11:Nathan Feldman

House of Delegates District 18:Jon Cook

House of Delegates District 43: Bonnie “Raven” Lane

House of Delegates District 45: Glenn L. Ross
House of Delegates District 45: Steven “Andy” Ellis*

State Senate District 2: Jenna Roland*

State Senate District 19: David Jeang

*=Not yet filed