Iowa has one of the nation’s highest rates of African American incarceration in the country and, according to a new report, mandatory minimums may be responsible.
Mandatory minimum sentences require a specific amount of time in prison and at least 70 percent of sentences served before eligibility for parole. Iowa is one of the only Midwestern states with mandatory minimum sentencing for robbery-related offenses.
More African Americans are serving mandatory sentences when compared to the rest of Iowa’s prisoners. African Americans, just 3.4 percent of the state’s population, make up some 35 percent of violent crime offenders in Iowa prisons. Over half of all robbery arrests in 2014 were black. Caucasians make up over 92 percent of the state.
The new Des Moines Register report found that “robbery sentencing guidelines for 11 Midwestern states shows that Iowa’s are the most restrictive. They allow the least amount of judicial discretion in determining how much time an offender will spend behind bars.”
Polk County Attorney John Sarcone was dismissive of the racial disparity among Iowa prisoners, “Guess what? They are committing the crimes,” he told the Register.
“The reality is, there’s a disparity in the number of crimes committed by people of color. What you have to do is address the conduct there,” Sarcone said. “The law isn’t bad; it’s the conduct that it is directed at is what’s bad.”
But almost half of Iowans disagree with Sarcone. A Des Moines Register poll from February, that surveyed 804 Iowa adults, shows that “49 percent believe Iowa lawmakers should either reduce or eliminate mandatory minimum sentences; 41 percent oppose making changes; and 10 percent are not sure.”
