Please be advised that there is an important Bill that has been introduced in the United States House of Representatives by Robert Scott, D., VA and John Conyers, D., MI.  Its name is HR 4300, Juvenile Justice Accountability and Improvement Act of 2007.

HR4300 would effectively end juvenile life without parole in the entire United States of America.  HR4300 is the most important legislation we could ever support.  A step in any direction where prison reform is concerned accelerates all other reform, so please dedicate your efforts to this important national legislation.

The United States is the only nation on earth that sentences its children to life without parole (LWOP).  We have nearly 2500 children sentenced to die in prison, including some as young as 13.  Children are NOT adults.  All studies show that teen’s brains are not fully developed, and that they do not have the maturity to always make rational, reasoned decisions. The United States’ Supreme Court stated that children should not be held to the same level of culpability as adults.

HR4300 would give children sentenced to life the opportunity for parole once in 15 years.

Your help is needed in 3 areas: 

1.  Send an email, make a phone call, or send a hard copy letter of this information to every relevant contact you know--including politicians, activists, children's organizations, celebrities and churches who want any type of prison change and tell them about HR 4300 and that it will functionally end all juvenile life in prison in the U.S.  Especially, send this information to any inmate you know and ask them to inform other inmates inside the prisons where little information is available about such important issues as HR4300.  

Ask your contacts to convey by email, phone or letter some version of the following:

 Honorable Members of The  House Sub-Committee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security,

“I support HR4300, which would give children sentenced to die in prison a second chance.”

 (You can add your own personal comments about the bill, as well.)

 Sincerely,

              (Your name and address)

2.If you live in a State that is represented by one of the Sub-Committee Members, please write a personal letter to that  particular member and ask for their support.

3.  Please contact Cat Lambert at the address and email listed below.   You can gather names anywhere; churches, work places, meeting places, hair salons, friends, family.......Send those to Cat, she will enter the information in the data base and then fax them to legislators.

All correspondence should be mailed to:

CAT LAMBERT

919 SILVER MESA

DURANGO, CO 81301

PHONE NUMBER:  970-382-9089

lambert@mydurango.net

 If you would like to help coordinate activities in your state, please contact: lambert@mydurango.net. She will put you in touch with the proper contacts.

LISTED BELOW ARE LETTERS AND A PETITION YOU CAN DOWNLOAD AND USE IN SUPPORT OF HR4300

HR4300 PETITION

LETTER TO THE SUB-COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN

LETTER TO THE SUB-COMMITTEE

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

CONTACT INFORMATION FOR SUB-COMMITTEE