Policies on Criminal Justice
The ABA plays a critical role enacting effective criminal laws that respect individual liberties and protect the integrity of our justice system.
CJS Resolutions Passed at the 2024 ABA Annual Meeting
Resolution 517 urges all legislative bodies and governmental agencies to enact laws and adopt policies prohibiting law enforcement from knowingly employing or relying upon deception; Resolution 518 urges governments to adopt investment principles and vehicles that do not include entities that generate at least 20% or another designated percentage of their revenue from incarceration facilities and supervision; Resolution 519 urges all governments and states to adopt forensic genetic genealogy (FGG) legislation
CJS Resolution on Prosecutorial Discretion Passed at 2024 Midyear Meeting
Resolution 501 urges governments to affirm the essential role of prosecutorial discretion and to protect prosecutors for removal for partisan reasons. Other co-sponsored resolutions that passed are: #506 (timely reporting of all deaths and independent investigation into the cause of any death that occurs in a correctional institution or in the custody of law enforcement); #602 (Principles for Juries and Jury Trials).
CJS Statement on Racial Equity in the Justice System
The Criminal Justice Section of the American Bar Association stands in solidarity with all who demand an end to racism, inequality and injustice.
Supreme Court Case Quick Updates
Summaries of opinions regarding cases related to criminal law before the U.S. Supreme Court, on the day of the decision.
ABA CJS Plea Bargaining Task Force
The task force closely examines the role of plea bargaining in our modern system of criminal justice. Its goal is to develop both broad policy oriented goals for the criminal justice system and, where necessary, specific recommendations for changes in the way plea bargaining operates within the larger criminal justice environment.
Prosecutorial Independence Task Force
The goal of the task force is to preserve and strengthen prosecutorial independence and enhance the American public’s understanding of the prosecutor’s critical role in maintaining the integrity of the criminal justice system.
Task Force on Public Defense Independence
The goal of the task force is to protect and strengthen independence and enhance the public’s understanding of the critical role public defense independence plays in ensuring a fair and just criminal legal system.
More CJS Initiatives
Learn more about our special projects, including the Women in White Collar Subcommittee; Atrocity Crimes Initiative; Achieving an Impartial Jury: Removing Bias in Voir Dire and Deliberations; the Legal Education Police Practices Consortium; and the acial Justice Improvement Project.
Judgment Drafting
The first installment in a series of International Criminal Law Practice Project publications identifying best practices and providing practical guidance for common challenges faced by practitioners of international criminal law. Judgment Drafting addresses a range of issues unique to the complex judgments produced through atrocity crimes cases.
Plea Bargaining
The ABA CJS Plea Bargaining Task Force released its report on the state of plea bargaining in the US and its 14 Principles for reforming the plea bargaining system.
Pulling Back the Curtain
A Follow-Up Report from the ABA Criminal Justice Section's Task Force: Women in Criminal Justice.
Report on the First Step Act Implementation
The ABA Criminal Justice Section has released a report from its Task Force on the Implementation of the First Step Act that includes three concerns surrounding the implementation of the criminal justice reform law that was enacted in 2018.
Second Chances: Alternatives to Incarceration & Reentry Strategies
TheABACommissiononEffective Criminal Sanctions has developed a series of policy recommendations that it anticipates will provide the basis for a broad reform agenda to reduce reliance on incarceration and remove legal barriers to offender reentry that drive high rates of recidivism.
Internal Exile: Collateral Consequences of Conviction in Federal Laws and Regulations
This study collects and describes the collateral consequences of a criminal conviction that arise under federal statutes and regulations.
The Reform of Federal Sentencing for Economic Crimes
In April 2013 the Criminal Justice Section of the American Bar Association assembled this Task Force to evaluate the reforms needed in the sentencing of federal economic crimes and to draft a proposed federal sentencing guideline to effectuate those reforms.
Pretrial Release Decision Making
Frequently asked questions about pretrial release decision making.
School-to-Prison Pipeline
The school-to-prison pipeline—the metaphor encompassing the various issues in our education system that result in students leaving school and becoming involved in the criminal justice system—is one of our nation’s most formidable challenges.
College Due Process Rights and Victim Protections
The Executive Committee of the ABA Criminal Justice Section commissioned the Task Force on College Due Process Rights and Victim Protections in November 2016.
Body-Worn Camera Basic Principles
The issues surrounding the use of body-worn cameras will and should be the subject of continuing discussion.
Index of Criminal Justice Policies
ABA Criminal Justice Policy Resolutions from 1996 to Present (Chronological).
Criminal Justice Standards
For fifty years, the ABA Criminal Justice Standards have guided policymakers and practitioners working in the criminal justice arena.
Amicus Briefs
Amicus briefs filed by the American Bar Association at the request of the Criminal Justice Section
Criminal Justice System Improvements (ABA Policy Priorities)
The ABA plays a critical role in working with Congress to enact effective criminal laws that respect individual liberties and protect the integrity of our justice system.
Center for Professional Responsibility
The Center for Professional Responsibility and its entities offer numerous resources relating to ethics, professionalism, client protection, professional discipline, specialization and global initiatives.
National Inventory of the Collateral Consequences of Conviction
An online catalog of over 45,000 federal and state statutes.