Fairfax County, Virginia, Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano announced major sentencing reforms Wednesday, with the goal of proposing statewide changes in the future.
“The overall goal here is to build a more fair and just criminal justice system, while also having a system that actually keeps our community safe,” Descano said.
County prosecutors will stop using mandatory minimum sentences in plea deals and charging people who commit minor offenses with felonies.
The sentencing reforms are just the latest changes made by Descano. Last week, he announced that prosecutors in his office would no longer seek cash bail, and he wants Virginia to abolish the cash bail system entirely.
According to Descano, he is not finished yet with making changes.
“We’re going to make sure we treat kids as kids instead of charging them as adults, and we’re going to make increased use of alternative dispositions and diversion programs,” Descano said.
In cases involving probation, prosecutors must carefully customize how long it lasts to meet each person’s needs.
“We want to get at the underlying issues that somebody has, tailor a probation length around that and really focus them on getting their issue taken care of and taking the rehabilitative steps,” Descano said. “Not keeping them in the system for years and years for no good reason.”
While changes are made on a local level, Descano said he is asking lawmakers to approve a statewide ban on mandatory minimum sentences. Help from the general assembly can solve some of the problems, including decreasing the number of mandatory minimums.
“They now are keyed into how devastating mandatory minimums are for communities, and how they don’t do anything to keep our communities safe,” Descano said. “They perpetuate mass incarceration that is felt predominantly Black and brown Virginians.”
Descano said that he has received lots of positive feedback from state lawmakers. He hopes to see the proposal pass during the upcoming general assembly session next month.
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