Criminal Legal Reform

Our criminal justice system is broken. Over the past few decades, our leaders have focused almost exclusively on increasingly tough penalties that do not deter criminals and do nothing to help increase public safety. Instead it has created a system of mass incarceration, over-criminalization, and racial injustice. In fact, our communities are less safe because our justice system wastes limited law enforcement resources on locking up low-level, non-violent offenders that pose no real risk to public safety. The ACLU of New Mexico fights to reform our broken justice system by:

• Opposing new criminal penalties in the legislature
• Advocating for alternatives to incarceration that we know work to increase public safety: addiction treatment programs, mental and behavioral health services, and job training
• Educating the public about ways we can save money and keep our children and families safe without resorting to mass incarceration

Along with 25 other organizations from across the political spectrum, the ACLU of New Mexico has launched a campaign called New Mexico SAFE. The campaign's goal is to help New Mexico get smart on crime by applying a simple set of standards to new crime legislation to determine whether it will actually help or hinder public safety in New Mexico. Learn more at www.nmsafe.org.