Major County Sheriffs Association

1450 Duke Street, Suite 207, Alexandria, Virginia 22314

President

Sheriff Richard Stanek Hennepin County Sheriffs Office 350 S 5th St Room 6 Courthouse Minneapolis, MN 55415-1316 612 348-2347 612 3484208 (fax) rich.stanek@co.hennepin.mn.us Sheriff Al Lamberti Broward County Sheriffs Office 2601 West Broward Boulevard Fort Lauderdale, FL 33312 954 831-8901 954 797-0936 (fax) al_lamberti@sheriff.org

March 19, 2012 The Honorable James Webb Commonwealth of Virginia United States Senate 248 Russell Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510 Dear Senator Webb, I am writing on behalf of the Major County Sheriffs Association (MCSA) in support of S. 306, the National Criminal Justice Commission Act of 2011. The MCSA is a professional law enforcement association of elected sheriffs representing counties or parishes with a population of 500,000 or more. Collectively, we represent over 100 million Americans. While the U.S. Congress and legislative bodies in every state are constantly updating and enhancing criminal justice policies and programs, we believe it is time to take stock of the network of criminal justice systems that exist in this country to determine what is working well and where opportunities exist for enhancements. Your bill takes the right approach in establishing a commission of respected experts to review the issues. We think it is extremely important to recognize that the criminal justice systems in America Federal, state, local, tribal have played a dominant role in generating unprecedented declines in crime rates nationwide over the past 20 years. Innovation is happening on a daily basis in our departments and in agencies and legislative bodies across the country. The positive results are clear: violent crime is down more than 40%; overall drug use is down more than 25%. Success in achieving the public policy goal of increased public safety and reduced crime has not come without costs, however. Costs of incarceration, rehabilitation, treatment, and other requirements have increased. Recidivism continues to be a concern. In a time of tight budgets at every level of government, the identification and highlighting of practices and policies that can improve public safety outcomes while managing costs would be very helpful. (Page 1 of 2)

Vice President

Sheriff Michael J. Bouchard Oakland County Sheriffs Office 1200 North Telegraph Building 38 East Pontiac MI 48341 248 858-5001 248 858-1806 (fax) mbouchard@mcsheriffs.com Sheriff John Aubrey Jefferson County Sheriffs Office 531 Court Place Ste 604 Louisville Kentucky 40202 (502)574-5400 (502)574-8185 (fax) jaubrey@jcsoky.org Sheriff Donny Youngblood Kern County Sheriffs Office 1350 Norris Rd Bakersfield, CA 93308 (661) 391-7771 (661) 391-7515 youngblood@kernsheriff.com Sheriff Douglas C. Gillespie Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department 400 S. Martin L. King Blvd Las Vegas NV 89106-2984 (702) 828-3231 (702) 828-1548 (fax) dgillespie@mcsheriffs.com Joseph R. Wolfinger 482 Piscataway Drive Tappahannock VA 22560 (804) 445-9539 (804) 445-9023 (fax) jrwolfinger@mcsheriffs.com Michael Ferrence Jr. Academy Leadership Associates 701-A Caroline Street Fredericksburg VA 22401-5903 540 899-2998 540 899-2908 (fax) mferrence@mcsheriffs.com

Vice President Government Affairs

Treasurer

Secretary

Past President

Executive Director

Associate Executive Director

The last crime commission convened under President Lyndon Johnson in the 1960s. That commission developed recommendations that directly shaped criminal justice advancements in the ensuing years. The MCSA is optimistic that a similar commission will result in similar positive outcomes. Thank you for your leadership. Sincerely,

Sheriff Richard W. Stanek Hennepin County (MN) Sheriffs Office President, Major County Sheriffs Association

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