"Bill Eases Penalty for Crack Cocaine Possession"NPR
By Ari Shapiro
March 18, 2010
After more than a decade of debates, hearings and lobbying, the Senate has passed a bill to change the punishment for possession of crack cocaine.
The bill had strong support from both conservative Republicans and liberal Democrats. While the current law punishes crack users 100 times more heavily than powder cocaine users, the new Senate bill brings the 100-to-1 ratio down to 18-to-1.
In an interview, Cynthia Orr, president of the National Association of Criminal Defense lawyers, described how the 100-to-1 ratio plays out in real life.
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