Former vice chairman Joe Biden on Thursday declared that he believes “nobody should be in jail for a nonviolent crime.”
At the third Democratic primary debate in Houston, Biden offered the response as a part of a defense of his criminal justice record, though he seemed to be pertaining to serving time for nonviolent drug offenses instead of suggesting that white-collar criminals should, too, serve no jail time for his or her crimes.
“The fact of the matter is that what’s happened is that we’re during a situation now where there are numerous people that are in jail and should not be in jail. the entire means by which this could change is to — the model has got to change,” he said, adding: “Nobody should be in jail for a nonviolent crime.”
Biden then acknowledged the amount of commutations that happened when he was vice chairman , arguing that “nobody should be in jail for a drug problem” which drug abusers should instead be in rehabilitation centers.
Biden’s criminal justice record has come under heavy scrutiny throughout his candidacy as candidates look to crack his firewall of support from black voters, a key voting bloc of the party.
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His racial and criminal justice legacy are pressure points in both debates so far , and therefore the plan he released earlier this summer was immediately panned by a number of his rivals who pointed to his role in crafting a 1994 crime bill that they assert contributed to mass incarceration of individuals of color.
Biden’s proposal for criminal justice reform includes many provisions advocates have involved , like eliminating the sentencing disparity between offenses involving crack and powder cocaine, ending cash bail, pushing for the elimination of mandatory minimum sentences, decriminalizing marijuana and expunging prior cannabis-use convictions. He’s also said he would end incarceration “for drug use alone.”
