House Bill 1214

Background: House Bill 1214 would require that courts consider as a mitigating factor during sentencing an individual's history as a victim of abuse and provide for a reduced sentence in certain circumstances.

Our Stance: The ACLU of South Dakota supports House Bill 1214.

It becomes easy to dehumanize people charged with crimes. The criminal legal system is too often steered by a desire for vengeance, which serves no one. Not the defendant, not a victim or their family — whose pain must be acknowledged and heard. We must recognize that one-size-fits-all, increasingly harsh sentences have not resulted in lower rates of recidivism or greater public safety, much less healthier communities.