Bill To Address Drug Sentence Disparity, and other news

By The News Oct 16, 2009

Durbin Bill To Address Disparity in Drug Sentences Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) has introduced a new bill that would eliminate the disparity between crack and powder cocaine sentences, which many activists believe disproportionately affects Blacks. Durbin’s bill would increase the quantity of crack cocaine required for a mandatory prison term. Contractor Accused of Underpaying Immigrant Workers New York State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo has filed a civil suit against a contractor for underpaying and overworking immigrant workers. The contractor, Mike Mahoney, instituted a three-tier wage system that paid Irish workers $25 an hour, Black workers around $18, and Latino workers $15 an hour. Taxi Association Sues Airport Authority The Detroit Metropolitan Taxi Association is suing the Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport Authority for unconstitutionally barring its drivers from the airport because most of its membership are Hindu, Muslim, and Sikh immigrants. Texas ICE Raid Arrests 91 ‘Gang Members’ U.S. Immigration Customs and Enforcement arrested 91 suspected gang members from the Dallas-Fort Worth area as part of its claimed transnational initiative to crackdown on undocumented immigrant criminals. Many critics, however, are suspicious about ICE’s efforts that criminalizes immigrants innocent of gang-related activity.

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