Organizations

International CURE (Citizens United for Rehabilitation of Errants), a grassroots prison reform organization, will hold a public news conference at 2:00 p.m., Friday, May 4, at America's Best Values & Suites, 101 S. 3rd St. in Leavenworth, Kansas. The news conference will provide information regarding CURE's "Earn To Learn, To Not Return" model for prison reform.

On 27 April 2007, the US Sentencing Commission (USSC) voted to approve an amendment of the crack cocaine guidelines to lower applicable sentence ranges. In its press release (http://www.ussc.gov/PRESS/rel0407.htm), the USSC announced that a forthcoming report "will set forth current data and information that continue to support the Commission's consistently held position that the 100-to-1 crack-powder drug quantity ratio significantly undermines various congressional objectives set forth in the Sentencing Reform Act and elsewhere." The report has not been published as of this date. FedCURE will post the report as soon as it becomes available. You can check the USSC site at: http://www.ussc.gov.

Virginia: Let’s Follow in Their Footsteps … and Theirs, Too The Daily Press published an editorial expressing the need for Virginia to follow in the footsteps of Florida and Maryland by reforming their disenfranchisement laws. Current Virginia law permanently disenfranchises all individuals upon conviction of a felony. "They can ask to have their rights restored once they've completed their sentences, but the process is onerous, mean- spirited and uncertain. The result: More than 240,000 Virginians are deprived of the right to vote," the Press stated.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Monday, April 30, 200& CONTACT: Adam Eidinger Tel: 202-744-2671, E: [email protected] or Tom Murphy Tel: 207-542-4998, E: [email protected] North Dakota to DEA: Out of Our Hemp Fields

Drug Truth Network Update: Cultural Baggage + Century of Lies + 4:20 Drug War NEWS Half Hour Programs, Live Fridays... at 90.1 FM in Houston & on the web at www.kpft.org. Hundreds of our programs are available online at www.drugtruth.net, www.audioport.org and at www.radio4all.net. We provide the "unvarnished truth about the drug war" to scores of broadcast affiliates in the US and Canada.,

ASA ACTION: Challenging Butte County Ban FEDERAL: Public Health Official Fighting Forfeiture AUSTRALIA: Lawmaker to Introduce Medical Measure RHODE ISLAND: Legislature to Vote Soon MAINE: State Law May be Expanded

[Courtesy of Families Against Mandatory Minimums] WASHINGTON, D.C.: For the first time in 12 years, the U.S. Sentencing Commission has approved guideline changes to federal crack cocaine penalties, tonight by a 6-1 vote. The amendment affects approximately 78 percent of defendants convicted of crack cocaine offenses, reducing their sentences by an average of 16 months. It will now be sent to Congress on May 1, 2007, along with other proposed sentencing amendments.

In this update: 1. IDPI helps attain a sentencing reform victory in Maryland 2. IDPI mobilizes 50 clergy to support a medical marijuana bill in Illinois and generates substantial media coverage 3. Troy Dayton moves on, Tyler Smith is promoted to associate director

Maryland: Governor Signs Legislation Restoring Right to Vote On Tuesday, Gov. Martin O'Malley signed legislation restoring the right to vote to all formerly incarcerated individuals, ending the state's draconian lifetime voting ban. Coverage featuring the news included an "above-the-fold" front-page article in the Baltimore Sun. As a result of the legislation, which takes effect July 1, more than 50,000 Marylanders will be eligible to vote. Currently, those individuals convicted of two felonies can petition for vote restoration after their sentences and a three-year waiting period are completed. If both convictions are for violent offenses, the voting ban is permanent.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Wednesday, April 25, 2007 CONTACT: Adam Eidinger T: 202-744-2671, E: [email protected] or Tom Murphy T: 207-542-4998, E: [email protected] Eleven Farming States Introduce Hemp Legislation in 2007