Statement on CA Gov. Gavin Newsom Signing the RISE Act into Law

Los Angeles, CA – Below is a statement from Jeannette Zanipatin, Esq., California State Director for the Drug Policy Alliance, in response to Governor Gavin Newsom signing the RISE Act (SB 136) into law, which removes a discriminatory sentencing enhancement that added an extra year to an individual’s base sentence for each of their prior prison or felony jail terms:

“This is a major victory for low-income and communities of color in California, who have borne the brunt of tough-on-crime drug laws of the 80s and 90s and continue to be extremely over-policed even today. This bill rightly ensures they are not further discriminated against in the eyes of the law and re-penalized for those past ‘offenses,’ of which they have already served disproportionately severe sentences for.”

The Drug Policy Alliance is part of the RISE Coalition, which was instrumental in getting this legislation passed.