To: President Donald Trump, The United States House of Representatives, and The United States Senate

The Redeem ACT 2015

Support the Record Expungement Designed to Enhance Employment Act of 2015 (REDEEM Act) introduced by Senators Booker (D-NJ), Paul (R-KY).

Why is this important?

America’s criminal justice system is broken. In recent decades, we have incarcerated far too many people and kept them in prison far longer than necessary to ensure public safety. These policies have resulted in unsustainable costs and unacceptable racial disparities.

Each year, over 600,000 people walk out of prison and return to our communities. They seek jobs at our local businesses, relax in our public parks, and stand in line with us at the supermarket. Instead of doing everything we can to help them transition into productive lives, we erect barriers that make it harder for formerly incarcerated individuals to rejoin society.

It is time to recalibrate our approach to crime and punishment.

The bipartisan REDEEM Act, recently introduced by Senators Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Rand Paul (R-KY), would help to protect and restore the lives of individuals who have had contact with the criminal or juvenile justice system, while reducing recidivism. The legislation would repeal the felony drug ban for some people convicted of nonviolent drug offenses. It would allow the sealing of criminal records and improve the accuracy of FBI background checks. And it would make necessary improvements to the treatment of young people who encounter the juvenile justice system.

By removing barriers to reentry, the REDEEM Act would help returning citizens safely rejoin society and begin new lives. It would restore a measure of justice and fairness to the criminal and juvenile justice systems while promoting better outcomes that improve public safety.

I urge you to support this important legislation to protect and restore lives while keeping communities safe. Please sign on today as a cosponsor of the bipartisan REDEEM Act.

Sincerely,