"High" Crimes: Punishing America's Drug Offenders

The New England Journal on Criminal and Civil Confinement presents is Fall 2008 Symposium. * What is the current legal landscape drug offenders face in the American judicial system? * Are these laws effective in rehabilitating and punishing these offenders? Two Panels will Discuss: * The use of drug courts as an alternative to traditional forms of narcotics jurisprudence, and their impact on communities. * The traditional punishments, specifically mandatory minimum sentencing and the Sentencing Guidelines, and the controversies and policy justifications surrounding these issues. Featured Speakers: Panel I: Drug Courts * Hon. Kevin S. Burke, Hennepin District Court Judge, Minnesota * Joy Clark, Co-Chair of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers' Task Force on Problem-Solving Courts * Hon. Diana L. Maldonado, Chelsea District Court Judge, Massachusetts * Gerald P. Stewart, Assistant District Attorney, Suffolk County, Massachusetts * Hon. Leo T. Sorokin, United States Magistrate Judge, District of Massachusetts Panel II: Drug Sentencing * Professor Douglas A. Berman, William B. Saxbe Designated Professor of Law, Moritz College of Law, Ohio State University * Mary Price, Vice-President and General Counsel of Families Against Mandatory Minimums * Heidi Brieger, Chief of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force Unit, United States Attorney, District of Massachusetts * David W. White, Jr., Past President, Massachusetts Bar Association Contact Information RSVP to: Adonia Simpson at 617-422-7238, adonia.r.simpson@nesl.edu [5] or journalmbe@nesl.edu [6]