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Equitable and Common Sense Charging Policies

District attorney charging decisions should be equitable and advance our long-term, collective wellbeing. However, research shows that district attorneys disproportionately charge people of color with harsher offenses than Whites for similar conduct, unnecessarily over-charge with severe offenses that entail lengthy sentences, and fail to sufficiently divert people from incarceration to care. This hinders community safety because each added year of incarceration results in a four to seven percent increase in post-release criminal activity, and approximately 95 percent of incarcerated people are eventually released.  Therefore, in collaboration with community partners, Reimagine Justice & Safety works to ensure that district attorneys adopt equitable and common sense charging policies.