Right On Crime

Right On Crime is a national, conservative criminal justice reform initiative in the U.S. that aims to gain support for criminal justice reform by sharing research and policy ideas, mobilizing leaders, and raising public awareness. Right On Crime reforms are focused on "reducing crime, restoring victims, reforming offenders, and lowering taxpayers' costs." The initiative primarily focuses on nine issues: prosecutorial innovation, correctional leadership, over-criminalization, civil asset forfeiture, juvenile justice, adult probation, parole and re-entry, law enforcement, and victims' rights. Right On Crime is a campaign of the Texas Public Policy Foundation, a conservative think tank. After its founding in Texas, Right On Crime has contributed to many criminal justice reforms in over 38 states, working with bipartisan partners throughout the country.

Background 

The Right On Crime initiative began its public affairs campaign in 2010. It was created in Texas in 2007 through a campaign by the Texas Public Policy Foundation in partnership with the American Conservative Union Foundation and Prison Fellowship. Right On Crime's website lists policy analysts, researchers, and law experts. They have helped create reform in 38 states through activities such as "...pass[ing] comprehensive juvenile justice reform bills... clos[ing] prisons, and divert[ing] savings back to the taxpayers and to recidivism-reducing programs."

Marc Levin founded Right On Crime and helped shift the conservative "tough on crime" approach that seeks to expand the criminal justice system into a fiscally conservative approach. Other Right On Crime supporters include Newt Gingrich, Pat Nolan, Jeb Bush, Rick Perry, and more. Regarding recidivism rates, Gingrich and Mark Earley contextualize the problem's magnitude by saying, "[i]f two-thirds of public school students dropped out, or two-thirds of all bridges built collapsed within three years, would citizens tolerate it?" Right On Crime also has partnerships with the Coalition for Public Safety, which contains both progressive and conservative groups with a common goal of making the criminal justice system fairer and more cost-effective. This Koch Industries funded organization works to create criminal justice reforms that reduce incarceration rates and end over criminalization, having obtained over $5 million in funding.

According to a January 2011 article in The Washington Post by former U.S. Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich and former California Speaker of the House Pat Nolan, "The Right on Crime Campaign represents a seismic shift in the legislative landscape. And it opens the way for a common-sense left-right agreement on an issue that has kept the parties apart for decades." Charlie Savage of The New York Times noted the conservative movement's growing support for Right On Crime in a Times editorial in October 2011, writing "The [corrections overhaul] movement has attracted the support of several prominent conservatives, including Edwin R. Meese III, the attorney general during the Reagan administration. He is part of a campaign, called 'Right On Crime,' which was begun last December to lend weight to what it calls the 'conservative case for reform.

Beginning in 2011, Right on Crime expanded its campaign into individual states, including Texas, Georgia, Oklahoma, and Florida. As of 2023, Right On Crime expanded its year-round presence to also include Arizona, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, North Carolina, Utah, Virginia, and West Virginia.

In 2014, the BBC reported that in Texas, rather than building new prisons, Right On Crime has led to the closure of three prisons.

Statement of Principles 
Right On Crime's Statement of Principles has been signed by over 90 conservative leaders. It advocates for cost-effective approaches to criminal justice spending, striving to "produce the best possible results at the lowest possible cost." The statement describes how the current criminal justice system does not work for every offender and may in fact be counterproductive by hardening low-risk offenders. The organization believes that safety is a core government responsibility, but also describes the importance of upholding conservative values such as a constitutionally limited government. Other values include "...transparency, individual liberty, personal responsibility, free enterprise, and the centrality of the family and community."

The organization's principles describe how the criminal justice system should lower crime rates, collect victim restitution, and reduce taxpayer spending. It explains how the criminal justice system's key " consumers, " including the public, victims, and taxpayers, should have a voice in defining justice. They state how the system should reform criminals who will return to society and contribute positively to their communities. Overall, the principles describe how the system should strive to reach all these goals without expanding governmental power or limiting economic freedom.

Right On Crime signatories 
Right On Crime's Statement of Principles has been signed by over 90 individuals including:

 Jeff Atwater, Former Florida Senate President
 Bob Barr, Former Prosecutor, Former Member of the U.S. House of Representatives, Georgia’s 7th District
 David Barton, WallBuilders
 William J. Bennett, Former U.S. Secretary of Education and Federal “Drug Czar”
 Allan Bense, Former Speaker of the Florida House
 Ken Blackwell, Former Ohio Secretary of State
 L. Brent Bozell, Founder, Media Research Center and Chairman of ForAmerica
 Matthew J. Brouillette, Commonwealth Foundation (PA)
 Jeb Bush, Former Governor of Florida
 Dominic M. Calabro , Florida Tax Watch (FL)
 Jon Caldara, Independence Institute (CO)
 Dean Cannon, Former Florida Speaker
 Chuck Colson, Prison Fellowship Ministries
 Ward Connerly, American Civil Rights Institute; Former Regent of the University of California
 Monica Crowley, Ph.D., Fox News political analyst
 Jim DeMint, Former South Carolina Senator
 Craig DeRoche, Senior Vice President of Advocacy & Public Policy of Prison Fellowship, Former Speaker of the Michigan House of Representatives
 Donald Devine, Former Director, Office of Personnel Management
 Viet Dinh, Georgetown University Law Center and former U.S. Assistant Attorney General
 Richard Doran, Former Florida Attorney General
 Robert Ehrlich, Former Maryland Governor
 Erick Erickson, The Resurgent
 Luis Fortuño, Former Puerto Rico Governor
 Don Gaetz, Former Florida Senate President
 Newt Gingrich, Former Speaker of the House of Representatives; American Solutions for Winning the Future
 Jack Graham, Pastor of Prestonwood Baptist Church
 Mike Haridopolos, Former Florida Senate President
 Bill Haslam, Former Governor of Tennessee
 Mike Huckabee, Former Arkansas Governor
 B. Wayne Hughes Jr., Businessman/Philanthropist
 Asa Hutchinson, Governor of Arkansas;Former U.S. Attorney and Administrator of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration
 Bishop Harry Jackson, Hope Christian Church
 Henry Juszkiewicz, Gibson Guitar
 David Keene, American Conservative Union
 George Kelling, Manhattan Institute (NY)
 Bernard Kerik, Former New York City Police Commissioner
 Rabbi Daniel Lapin, American Alliance of Jews and Christians
 Edwin Meese III
 John S. McCollister, Platte Institute (NE)
 B.J. Nikkel, Former House Republican Majority Whip, Colorado House of Representatives
 Pat Nolan, Former Republican Leader of the California State Assembly
 Grover Norquist, Americans for Tax Reform
 Star Parker, Center for Urban Renewal and Education
 Tony Perkins, Family Research Council
 Rick Perry, Former Governor of Texas
 Kevin Roberts, Heritage Foundation & former Texas Public Policy Foundation
 Ralph Reed, Founder of the Faith and Freedom Coalition
 Brooke Rollins, America First Policy Institute & former Texas Public Policy Foundation
 Kris Steele, Former Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives
 Larry Thompson
 John Tillman, Illinois Policy Institute (IL), President, Think Freely Media
 Brett Tolman, Executive Director of Right On Crime and Former U.S. Attorney, District of Utah; Former Counsel, Senate Judiciary Committee
 Richard Viguerie, ConservativeHQ.com
 J.C. Watts, Former Member of the U.S. House of Representatives, Oklahoma’s 4th District
 Will Weatherford, Former Speaker of the Florida House
 Bob Woodson, Center for Neighborhood Enterprise

The First Step Act 
Right On Crime supports the First Step Act and cosigned its endorsement letter to Congress, along with 41 other organizations. The act includes programming to reduce recidivism rates and lower mandatory minimums. The First Step Act was approved on December 18, 2018, in a 87 to 12 vote through the Senate. Right On Crime signatory Ken Cuccinelli states that "these common-sense reforms will improve public safety by reducing recidivism and provide a second chance to those who have served their time and who want to live law-abiding, productive lives."

References

External links 

Prison reform
Crime in the United States
Conservatism in the United States
Criminal justice reform in the United States