WXYZ Detroit reported on September 29th, 2020 that COVID-19 is highlighting disparities in the US criminal justice system. The article uses Quentin Burt’s story to show how Federal mandatory minimum sentencing has impacted the US – in the 1970’s, the federal prison population was about 300,000. Now, it’s nearly two-and-a-half million. COVID-19 is revealing the many disparities in the system where Burt, with a non-violent drug offense, was held for 30 years and was only released because of COVID-19 and the compassionate release program.
