Collateral Consequences: The Crossroads of Punishment, Redemption, and the Effects on Communities

"...This report provides an overview of the relevant data and arguments for and against the imposition of collateral consequences on people with criminal records. Each year, federal and state prisons release more than 620,000 people to return to their communities. While these individuals have often completely exited criminal supervision (for example, through a prison sentence or probation), individuals with criminal records still face potentially thousands of collateral consequences upon reentering society. These collateral consequences are sanctions, restrictions, or disqualifications that attach to a person because of the person’s criminal history. For example, individuals with criminal histories can face barriers to voting, jury service, holding public office, securing employment, obtaining housing, receiving public assistance, owning a firearm, getting a driver’s license, qualifying for financial aid and college admission, qualifying for military service, and maintaining legal status as an immigrant. The reach of each collateral consequence extends past people with criminal records to affect families and communities.

The Commission majority (six Commissioners in favor, one Commissioner in opposition) approved key findings including the following: Collateral consequences exacerbate punishment beyond the criminal conviction after an individual completes the court-imposed sentence. Valid public safety bases support some collateral consequences, such as limitations on working with children for people convicted of particular dangerous crimes. Many collateral consequences, however, are unrelated either to the underlying crime for which a person has been convicted or to a public safety purpose. When the collateral consequences are unrelated in this way, their imposition generally negatively affects public safety and the public good..."
Collateral consequences

Peer-to-Peer:Violence and Bullying:Examining the Federal Reponse

"Based on the evidence gathered by the Commission, we conclude that despite the harm that
peer-to-peer bullying and harassment due to a student‘s membership in certain classes, such
as race, religion, or sexual orientation, current federal laws (and the laws of many states) do
not fully protect all students from peer-to-peer bullying and harassment resulting from
animus toward their group status.

Specifically, the Commission‘s findings, by majority vote, are:

1. Bullying and harassment, including bullying and harassment based on sex, race, national
origin, disability, sexual orientation, or religion, are harmful to American youth.

2. Current federal civil rights laws do not provide the U.S. Department of Education with
jurisdiction to protect students from peer-to-peer harassment that is solely on the basis of
religion.

3. The current federal civil rights laws do not protect students from peer-to-peer
harassment that is solely on the basis of sexual orientation..."