The Americans for Prosperity Foundation is hosting events around the Pelican State revolving around criminal justice reform: the latest public policy cause AFPF is championing and an attempt to build on the reforms passed in the 2017 legislative session.

These events, co-sponsored by the Pelican Institute and Right on Crime, will focus on identifying ways we can reform the justice system to end recidivism cycles. The tour, which begins Monday, June 24 in Baton Rouge, will also make stops in Lafayette, New Orleans, and Monroe. Liberty organizations throughout the nation have taken up criminal justice reform in recent years citing the need to lighten penalties for non-violent offenders.

According to AFPF, the network vision on penal reform is, “An effective criminal justice system protects people and preserves public safety, respects human dignity, restores victims, removes barriers to opportunity for people with criminal records, and ensures equal justice for all under the law.” AFP State Director John Kay issued the following statement on the upcoming tour:

“I’m excited to travel the state with the Pelican Institute and Right on Crime to educate Louisianans about the successes ad future of criminal justice reform in Louisiana.”

Reform of the penal system is an ongoing process, and one of significance in the Bayou State. Recidivism rates in Louisiana consistently rank amongst the highest in the country with no end in sight. In recent months, criminal justice reform events in Louisiana have drawn large crowds and enthusiastic bipartisan backing.

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Louisiana is one of the latest states to take the plunge with criminal justice reform legislation. Many other states, among them Texas, South Carolina, Washington and Florida, have adopted some form of sentencing reform, parole reform, or decriminalization. When effective, those policies have moved the needle in far-ranging ways: lower recidivism, plummeting crime rates, and better relationships between troubled communities and police. As more prominent organizations join AFPF and Pelican in championing penal reform, there could be similar salutary effects in Louisiana, where sky-high crime rates and incarceration have long been intractable stains on the landscape.