Developing Safer Alternatives to Gun-Related Criminal Penalties

Provide an executive summary of the proposed project. The project involves law and practice research, policy analysis, communications, and convening, and strategic planning in aid of developing criminal justice system reforms that are a) developmentally-appropriate and b) reduce overall gun violence while c) reducing racial disproportionality in both injury and punishment. While gun culture and criminalization are polarized nationally, the Great Lakes region contains some of its most extreme examples. Its wide range of urban, suburban, and rural approaches to gun-related behavior mirror its equally wide range of criminal penalties and their disproportionate use. While Illinois (the subject of a parallel Joyce project) has some of the longest and most mandatory penalties in the country, other states in the region structure their criminal code very differently. Due to the criminogenic effects of prison as well as the negative externalities imposed upon families and community that lead to additional instability, the entire region would benefit from an inquiry into, and move toward, best practices. One example area is unlawful weapons possession, particularly firearms. A preliminary data snapshot using Cook County, Illinois data for a recent 5-year period shows approximately: - 10,000 sentences issued for weapons possession charges in criminal (adult) court - 5,000 of them as the primary charge (“primarily possession” sentences) Of the 5,000 “primarily possession” adult sentences: - Most (96.8%) were for boys and men - Most (80%) were for African-Americans (an additional 16% were Hispanic/Latinx) - Most (64.2%) were for young adults aged 17-25 - Most (92%) young adults received a felony - Most (82.4%) young adults with a felony received a prison sentence Cumulatively, research shows that most young people in Chicago carry guns for defensive motivations; that young Black men are at particular risk of being shot, and that Cook County sentenced