1. law, govt and politics

2014
Changing Sentences,
Changing Lives
Families Against Mandatory Minimums is the most effective sentencing reform advocacy group in the United States.
Since 1991, FAMM has worked to eliminate mandatory sentencing laws and promote sentencing policies rooted in the
fundamental American values of individualized justice, fairness, proportionality, and respect for liberty and due process.
By sharing stories of families and prisoners, we highlight the human cost of mandatory sentencing laws, and advocate
for more efficient and effective protection of public safety.
Board of Directors
Staff Directory
Julie Stewart, Chair
Julie Stewart, President and Founder
Scott Wallace, Vice Chair
Mary Price, General Counsel
Eric Sterling, Secretary
Roxana Rincones, Finance and Administration Director
Paul Beckner, Treasurer
Andrea Strong, Member Services Director
Jason Flom
Molly Gill, Government Affairs Counsel
Carmen Hernandez
Barbara Dougan, Massachusetts Project Director
Greg Newburn, State Project Director
Mike Riggs, Communications Director
Sarah Godfrey, Research Director
Jessica Breslin, Research and Communications Associate
Meagan Heller, External Relations Director
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
Never in the 24-year history of FAMM
have we changed as many prisoners’
lives as we did on a single day in July
2014.
On that day in Washington, D.C., in a
room packed full of FAMM members,
the U.S. Sentencing Commission voted
to approve a sentence reduction that FAMM had suggested to
them seven years earlier… and had been pushing ever since.
That vote changed the lives of over 40,000 federal prisoners
serving drug sentences and will mean more than $2 billion in
prison bed savings.
Two people who benefited from this major reform are profiled
on page 4. I wish we had room to share the thousands of other
exclamations of joy we’re receiving from federal drug prisoners
across the country! Many are getting years chopped off their
sentences!
We also had two significant victories in Florida – one of the
reddest of the red states – that will prevent unnecessary
incarceration and save millions of tax dollars. That’s a win-win
for everyone.
We fight for these legislative victories because they change lives.
For years, FAMM was nearly alone in fighting these uphill battles.
But that is changing. In 2014, it was as if the whole country
woke up to the need for sentencing and criminal justice reform.
Conservatives and liberals in and outside of Congress started
talking about, supporting, and endorsing sentencing reform.
Washington insiders are now calling criminal justice reform the
one thing in Washington that Congress might actually be able to
get passed!
It’s a pleasure for me to share our successes from 2014 and to
thank the generous donors who made them possible. Because
of that support, the future holds great promise for significant
sentencing reforms that will change many thousands of lives and
ensure greater liberty and justice.
My very best,
Changing Sentences
for 40,000 People
Thanks to the efforts of FAMM members, 2014 saw changes
to federal drug sentencing guidelines that will translate into
shorter sentences for tens of thousands of drug prisoners.
For two decades, FAMM has compelled the seven members of the
U.S. Sentencing Commission – who determine sentences for every
federal crime – to improve the sentencing guidelines that affect
thousands of defendants. In 2014, we exceeded all of our past
successes at the Commission, winning sentence recalculations
for more than 40,000 prisoners!
In April, the Commission agreed to lower federal drug guideline
sentences for all new federal drug offenders. That reform will reduce
sentences for incoming drug prisoners by an average of 11 months,
reversing the trend of ratcheting up sentences that has dominated
sentencing policy for 30 years.
We followed that significant success with a massive letter-writing
campaign, urging the Commission to make the new, lower drug
guidelines applicable to the men and women currently in prison for
drug offenses. Our members helped generate more than 65,000
letters, a critical mass that played a significant role in persuading
the Commission to vote in favor of retroactivity! As a result, roughly
40,000 federal drug prisoners are petitioning the courts for reductions
in their sentences. The average reduction is 23 months, but we
have heard from many who have had decades removed from their
sentences and are on their way home!
David Mosby
Ronald Saname
In November, Nicole Jackson-Gray, a health-care provider in Southern
California, learned that her brother Ronald Saname, who has been in
prison for a drug offense since 1989, would be coming home early.
Ronald’s sentence was cut from 40 years to 27 years thanks to the
U.S. Sentencing Commission’s vote to retroactively lower federal
drug guideline sentences. “I really cannot believe that this is even
happening,” Ronald wrote to FAMM from prison, after learning he’d
been granted a shorter sentence. “Thank you so much for the diligent
work that you all put in for so many years.”
His sister was elated. “I’m just so excited and thrilled and so happy,
and FAMM is a big part of that,” Jackson-Gray says. “FAMM is like our
extended family.”
On March 18, 2015, David Mosby enjoyed a big country breakfast at
Cracker Barrel, surrounded by family and friends. This gathering was
possible because David, who was sentenced to 40 years in prison
for a nonviolent drug offense in 1991, had 10 years shaved from his
sentence when the Sentencing Commission voted to retroactively
lower federal drug guideline sentences in 2014. David is incredibly
grateful to be reunited with his family and serve a shorter sentence.
“I’m so blessed to get this break to go home at age 63 not 73,”
he wrote in an email to FAMM. Still, he says his early release is
bittersweet. “[T]here are so many [others] that need to go, too— I’m
thankful but it’s hard to be real happy knowing how many are left
behind.”
Changing Minds
In 2014, FAMM’s two decades of promoting bipartisan support for sentencing reforms bore new fruit with the introduction of the Smarter
Sentencing Act. This bipartisan sentencing reform bill – the first in four years – gathered enough momentum to make it out of the Senate
Judiciary Committee before the congressional calendar (and a little of its steam) ran out. The identical bill was introduced in the House with
bipartisan support and included among its 55 cosponsors Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI), Chairman of the House Budget Committee.
To expand our conservative reach, FAMM was an exhibitor for the first time at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC). With
attendance of several thousand, our message was well received, even by those who had never given it much thought. Furthering our bipartisan
outreach, FAMM cohosted a congressional briefing in November, called “Reaching the Tipping Point.” Speakers from the Charles Koch Institute,
Heritage Foundation, ACLU, Right on Crime, and FAMM, found plenty of consensus about the need for criminal justice reform and ways to achieve it.
Changing Laws: FAMM’s State Projects
Massachusetts
FAMM’s Massachusetts team, led by Barbara Dougan, took advantage of the 2014 election
year to elevate discussion of mandatory minimum sentencing laws among candidates. FAMM
surveyed every Massachusetts candidate for district attorney, attorney general, governor’s
council, and governor about their support of sentencing reform. The responses were compiled
into a report that we shared with FAMM members and media in the state, allowing reporters and
voters to see, at a glance, where candidates stood on mandatory minimum reform.
Half of the candidates returned the surveys and of those, 86 percent wanted to either reform or
repeal drug-related mandatory minimum sentences. Not a single respondent wanted to expand
existing mandatory minimums or create new ones. Many of the candidates who supported the
repeal of drug-related mandatory minimums won their elections, including Governor Charlie Baker
and Attorney General Maura Healy, both of whom are strong proponents of sentencing reform.
Florida
In 2008, Orville Lee Wollard, an animal trainer, devoted husband, and father of
two teenage daughters, fired a warning shot into the wall of his Florida home to
protect his family from a young man who threatened them. Months later, he was
convicted of “aggravated assault” and sent to prison for a mandatory 20 years,
where he remains to this day. “It never dawned on me that I would lose, because I
hadn’t done anything wrong,” Wollard told CBS News Sunday Morning, which ran a
segment on his story 2014.
“I’d protected my family, and I didn’t even hurt anybody.”
Wollard’s case, and others like it, drove FAMM to fight for reform of the “aggravated
assault” gun laws that trigger mandatory 20-year sentences. In 2014, we
succeeded. Working with the NRA and a handful of other partners, we persuaded
the Florida legislature to create an exception to the law, allowing people to fire a
warning shot without facing an automatic two decades in prison. Unfortunately, the
reform was not made retroactive, so Wollard is still behind bars. FAMM is asking
the governor to commute his sentence to time served.
In 2014, FAMM also won more reasonable sentences for prescription drug crimes
in Florida. The state legislature agreed to increase the number of prescription
pills that trigger the three-year mandatory prison sentence from seven pills to 22
pills. While it is still a small number of pills, this change will spare some 1,000
Floridians from harsh mandatory minimums over the next eight years, and, by
some estimates, save the state as much as $50 million, which can be spent on
substance abuse counseling, alternatives to incarceration, or be returned to the
taxpayers.
Changing Lives
On May 20, FAMM honored 14 former prisoners – all of whom won the clemency
lottery – with a dinner and day of advocacy. The “commutees,” granted clemency by
presidents Clinton, Bush, and Obama, visited their legislators on Capitol Hill, urging them
to support sentencing reform, and participated in a standing-room only congressional
briefing, where they told not only their own stories, but the stories of those men and
women whom they left behind.
The event ended with the “Changing
Sentences, Changing Lives” dinner,
co-hosted with the ACLU, which was
not only a successful fundraiser, but a
celebration of freedom.
More clemency successes
In December, President Obama granted clemency to eight more individuals, including
several FAMM members. One of them, Barbara Scrivner, who was serving a 30-year
sentence for her role in a methamphetamine conspiracy, finally saw her nightmare come
to an end. She is now living with her adult daughter, who was just 8 years old when
Barbara went to prison.
FAMM eagerly answered the call of the Attorney General to provide the President with
the names of deserving prisoners for clemency. We joined forces with several other
organizations to form the Clemency Project 2014. The goal of the Clemency Project is to
ensure that all eligible federal prisoners have access to free legal help with commutation
petitions. We are optimistic that our Clemency Project work will result in many more
changed lives as President Obama uses his executive power to grant clemency to the
thousands of deserving federal prisoners serving pointlessly harsh prison sentences.
Reynolds Wintersmith
On Dec. 19, 2013 Reynolds was one of
eight lucky people who received clemency
from President Obama. He had served
more than 21 years in prison. Reynolds,
who was part of FAMM’s “Changing
Sentences, Changing Lives” event, now
works as a Chicago high school guidance
counselor.
He wakes up every morning and
encourages society’s “at risk” teenagers
to strive for hopeful and purposeful lives.
“The person I have become is my way of
apologizing to all I have ever wronged,”
Reynolds says. “[C]ounseling is not work
for me. I have a chance to share who I
am with young people and listen to their
struggles with an open mind.”
2014 FINANCIALS
ASSETS
CURRENT ASSETS
Cash and cash equivalents:
$1,831,714
Investments in securities:
$2,680
Grants and pledges receivable:
$302,205
Employee advances:
$2,092
Prepaid expenses:
$16,412
Total Current Assets....................................................................$2,155,103
PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT – AT COST
Furniture:$3,495
Equipment:$11,263
Software:$20,067
Less: accumulated depreciation
$(25,656)
Total Property and Equipment...........................................................$9,169
26%
7%
9%
9%
34%
40%
84%
45%
50%
PROGRAM EXPENSES
EXPENSES
REVENUE TOTAL
State & Regional Programs: $482,022
Public Education: $554,879
Federal Advocacy: $361,458
Program Expenses: $1,398,359
General & Administration: $149,796
Fundraising: $110,403
Foundation Grants: $1,297,500
Individual Contributions: $1,191,381
In-Kind Donations: $128,653
Unrealized gain on investment: $111
LIABILITIES AND ASSETS
CURRENT LIABILITES
Accounts payable:
$27,535
Accrued vacation payable:
$20,153
Accrued payroll and payroll taxes:
$16,920
Deferred rent:
$14,615
Total Current Liabilities....................................................................$79,223
OTHER ASSETS
Security deposit
$8,888
Total Other Assets..............................................................................$8,888
TOTAL ASSETS.............................................................................$2,173,160
NET ASSETS
Unrestricted net assets:
$952,270
Temporarily restricted net assets:
$1,141,667
Total Net Assets..........................................................................$1,134,826
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND NET ASSETS........................................$1,207,144
2014 CONTRIBUTERS
Foundations/ Funds/ Faith Communities
Law Firms
Bernard F. and Alva B. Gimbel Foundation
BGR Foundation
Blum-Kovler Foundation
Chase Foundation of VA
Frank Denny Memorial Fund
First Parish In Lexington
Ford Foundation
Goldman Sacs Philanthropy Fund
Herb Block Foundation
Lesbians for Good of Horizons Foundation
J.P. Humphreys Foundation
Hughes Family Foundation
Joseph and Colleen Brandon Family Foundation
Kaphan Foundation
Open Society Institute
Public Welfare Foundation
Returning Home Foundation
Riverstyx Foundation
Selz Foundation
The Colburn Family Foundation
The Flom Family Foundation
The Lenfest Foundations
The Posel Foundation
Unitarian Church of Sharon
Vital Projects Fund
Wallace Global Fund
Bryan Cave LLP
Crowell & Moring LLP
Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP
King & Spalding LLP
Miller Chevalier
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP
Squire Patton Boggs
Venable LLP
Zuckerman Spaeder LLP
Pro-Bono Attorneys
Brown Rudnick LLP
Evan Turgeon and Paul Enzinna
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP
Kenneth Gross and Tyler Rosen
Ropes & Gray LLP
Aaron M. Katz and Richard Marshall
Squire Patton Boggs
George J. Schutzer and Glenn M. Willard
Bryan Cave LLP
Daniel Schwartz and Kristin Robinson
Patrons of Justice
Barry Boss
Philip and Jamie Bowles
Melinda and Gerald Boyd
Stephen B. Bright and Charlotta Norby
Blair G. Brown
Clifford N. Burnstein
Candace Carroll and Len Simon
Dennis and Lavon Chorba
Candace Clark
Donald R. Clark and Sonya Noel
De-Ann Coffman
Douglas B. Cox
John Crew and Sheila Gadsden
Douglas G. Cullinane
Jim and Charlotte Davidson
Diandra de Morrell Douglas
Brian and Betsy Deitte
Mark Drake
Kathryn E. Epstein
Timothy W. Ferguson
Jason R. Flom
David Fox
Kurt Frantz
Robert and Sandy Gelfond
John F. Gilmore
Peter and Cynthia Goettler
Philip D. Harvey
Lynn and Bruce Holbein
Ethelmae Humphreys
Linda M. Johnson
Holly and Bruce Johnstone
Skipper Jones
Albert and Diane Kaneb
Lori Kenschaft and Randall Smith
David H. Koch
Kathy and Jon Korin
Alan Kraut and Jane Steinberg
Paul H. Kuhn
John Kunze
Gerry Lenfest
Sylvia and Jaime Liwerant
Margaret and Daniel Loeb
Jerry Mathwig
Douglas and Sue Miller
Paul and Barbara Moe
Bernard Mondeau
Kyle and Adele O’Dowd
Gerry Ohrstrom
Nelson and Gretchen Otto
Michael Pearson
Kirk Perrow and Dean Pugh
Frances Posel
John F. Ring
Laurie Robinson and Sheldon Krantz
Tony Rudy
Andrea A. Saenz
Steven M. Salky
J. Barrie Sellers
Sam Sheldon
Julia Smith
Carol J. Smythe
Girardeau Spann
Carl and Leitha Spetzler
Stuart S. Taylor, Jr.
Elizabeth Taylor and David DeBruin
Steven Trabilsy
Michael Waldman and Linda Coe
Scott Wallace
Richard B. Wolf
2014
Changing Sentences,
1100 H Street NW
Suite 1000
Washington, DC 20005
Changing Lives