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Bernard Kerik: Congress must reform prison system

Disgraced former NYPD commissioner Bernard Kerik acknowledged on Monday that he’s a flawed messenger for his crusade to reform federal sentencing guidelines.
Kerik, who served three years in prison for tax evasion and lying to the White House, has been lashing out federal prison sentences that he believes unjustly “annihilate” prisoners worthy of rehabilitation.
New York’s former top cop, though, understands why critics would cast a doubting eye on his efforts.
“Don’t listen to me, you don’t have to listen to me,” he told NBC’s “Today” show. “[But] someone has to do something about that. Congress has to act. The American people have to be educated.”
Kerik tried to distance his personal misdeeds from this call to reform mandatory minimum sentences.

“It’s not about me being a victim of the system. I think the system is flawed. I think the system is supposed to punish. It’s not supposed to annihilate personally, professionally, financially,” Kerik said.

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“It’s not supposed to destroy families. The punishment must fit the crime. I was in prison with commercial fisherman that caught too many fish that spent three years in prison.”
He continued: “Their licenses were removed. They’re not going to be able to work in that industry for the rest of their lives. That’s a life sentence.”
Kerik also cited the case of a 21-year-old Marine sniper who was busted for selling night-vision goggles on eBay. That misstep cost him three years in prison – a punishment that far outdistanced the crime, according to Kerik,
“For the rest of his life he’s going to be a convicted felon,” Kerik said. “He can’t do anything else publicly for his country. It’s just horrible.”