the new jersey assembly has passed legislation (s-677, a-3677) to require racial impact statements for proposed criminal justice policies. upon concurrence from the senate, the measures will then require governor chris christie's signature.
new jersey has the nation's highest rate of racial disparity among imprisoned people. blacks are imprisoned at 12 times the rate of whites. although new jersey has reduced its prison population by as much as 28% since 2000 the culturally-biased disparities need to be resolved.
racial impact statements are used to proactively address how proposed sentencing legislation impacts cultural disparities in america's bigoted criminal justice system. s-677 would require analysis on the biased impacts of parole policies, pretrial detention, probation and sentencing.
a coalition of civil rights, criminal justice, faith-based and legal organizations worked to build momentum in support of this progressive legislation. if new jersey passes s-677, they will join connecticut, iowa and oregon as the only states to adopt racial impact statement legislation.
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