you so long to get there. i think if you look at this issue seriously, washington, d.c. is the last place that s willing to deal with a problem that everyone has been acknowledging for years. so i think grassroots america is ahead of us on this. and also i think that the solution comes from the bottom up with both sides pressuring both republicans and democrats to get the job done. you know the bill that has been introduced in the house to make comprehensive reform happens to be called the safe justice act, alison. here is what it does. it limits long mandatory minimum drug sentences to the leaders of large drug organizations. it gives judges more discretion when sentencing nonviolent offenders. and it strengthens alternative programs like drug courts which help addicts get back on the right path. how important is this legislation? oh, it s absolutely huge, reverend. we really have an opportunity to
start turning back the clock on four decades of devastation of communities, putting people behind bars for extraordinarily lengthy amounts of time for nonviolent drug offenses when the overwhelming majority of these people suffer from their own drug addiction problems. why are we wasting dollars on these bars when we know that what we need to be doing is getting people treatment in the community, keeping them together with their families so that we re not perpetrating the cycle of wasted dollars and wasted lives. now is the time to do this. and i think will is some real energy to see some tangible concrete reforms. it s an important issue, and we re glad to have people on both sides fighting for change. and we re going to stay on this issue. it must lead to action. and action come from legislation. matt kibbe and alison holcombe thank you both for your time tonight. thank you. thank you. still ahead, he s the late night president.
thanks to you for tuning in. we start with two major developments in the case of sandra bland. the woman found dead in her texas cell last week. according to the associated press, the sheriff says bland told the jail when she was booked that she had tried to commit suicide before and the wall street journal reports the district attorney says he is investigating whether the trooper who arrested her broke any laws. that trooper was put on desk duty. after investigators reviewed this dash cam video and determined that proper procedures weren t followed. and late today, bland s family talked about watching that video. as her sister i simply feel like the officer was picking on her. point-blank, period. and i personally think that is petty. she was pulled over for something so insignificant. and because of an officer who felt like maybe his ego was bruised and got in the way, not once did he ever say he felt threatened. but when you tell me that you re going to light me up i f