Senators Reach Deal On Criminal Justice Bill To Reduce Some Mandatory Minimums

BuzzFeed - A group of Republican and Democrat senators announced a long-awaited deal on a broad criminal justice bill Thursday. Advocates didn't get the cuts in mandatory minimums they were hoping for but are still supporting the bill. Win Mcnamee / Getty Images WASHINGTON — A bipartisan group of senators has reached a deal on a long-awaited criminal justice bill that would reduce some mandatory minimum sentences and give federal judges more flexibility in sentencing. In a press conference Thursday morning, seven Republican and Democratic senators released details of the Criminal Justice Reform and Corrections Act of 2015 — the result of months of negotiations and several years of growing bipartisan consensus around the issue. The bill does not eliminate any mandatory minimum sentences, as many criminal justice advocates had hoped for, and in fact adds a couple new ones, but it includes several measures that supporters say will n