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Christie calls for criminal justice reform

by Jesse Byrnes - 07/16/15 6:58 PM ET

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie on Thursday described the nation’s criminal justice system as “broken,” joining a chorus of voices this week urging reform.

Christie, a Republican presidential candidate, used his speech in Camden, N.J., to call for a “fresh approach” to addressing drug addiction and a renewed fight against crime.

“Peace on our streets is more than just the absence of violence. Justice isn’t something we can jail our way to,” he said in prepared remarks. “Justice is something we have to build in our communities.”

{mosads}Christie said states should be encouraged to invest in community policing initiatives, referring to Ferguson, Mo., which saw one of a series of high-profile clashes following police-involved deaths.

“For communities dealing with a legacy of government neglect, a helping hand is always better than an armored fist,” Christie said in his remarks. “The best way to keep the peace is to build it.”

Christie touted a slew of policing initiatives in his state, citing a 22 percent drop in overall violent crime, 30 percent drop in rape and just over 50 percent reduction in the rate of homicides.

The state’s reduction in crime has been hailed by others, including President Obama, who touted new limits on the flow of military-style equipment to local law enforcement during a speech there in May.

Christie underscored a focus on community outreach, more officers on the streets and investment in new technology, such as real-time monitoring of cameras and microphones to pinpoint gunshot locations.

“We’ve started to reclaim the streets. We’ve started to put life back into communities,” Christie said Thursday, touching on the need to equip law enforcement to deal with the “roots of crime.”

Christie called for a pathway out of “the spiral of poverty, drugs and crime” facing communities, including a pitch for an across-the-board use of drug courts for first-time, non-violent offenders to receive treatment, and for bail reform and connecting ex-offenders with services after leaving prison.

Criminal justice reform has been a major topic this week, with meetings on Capitol Hill, where legislation has garnered attention, as well as a push for reforms by the White House.

Obama called for an end to mass incarceration during a speech in Philadelphia on Wednesday, days after commuting the sentences of 46 people and ahead of his visit to a federal prison Thursday.

Criminal justice reform has also become a major issue in the 2016 campaign, especially among Republican presidential candidates such as Sen. Rand Paul (Ky.) and former Texas Gov. Rick Perry.

Hillary Clinton, the Democratic front-runner, has also made changing sentencing laws a centerpiece of her early campaign, calling for an end to an “era of mass incarceration” during a speech back in April.

Tags Chris Christie