FIRST STEP ACT: President Trump to announce support for criminal justice reform
President Donald J. Trump walks across the South Lawn of the White House Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018, to board Marine One for his flight to Joint Base Andrews, Md. to begin his trip to Columbia, Mo. (Official White House Photo by Joyce N. Boghosian)
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is planning to support the first major rewrite of the nation's criminal justice sentencing laws in a generation.
That's according to a senior White House official familiar with the president's plans who was not authorized to speak publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Lawmakers reached agreement this week on legislation that would boost rehabilitation efforts for federal prisoners and give judges more discretion when sentencing nonviolent offenders, particularly for drug offenses.
The official said Trump was briefed on the deal and plans to support it publicly during an event at the White House Wednesday afternoon.
Criminal justice reform has been a priority of Trump's son-in-law, White House senior adviser Jared Kushner.
Trump is expected to push for swift passage of the legislation, potentially during the lame-duck session of Congress.