Black men are given harsher prison sentences compared to white men who have committed the same crime, according to new government data released on Friday.

According to the US Sentencing Commission, African-American males serve on average 19.1 percent longer prison terms than white men convicted of the same crime.

The data shows that the disparity can’t be explained by prior convictions or a history of violence.

‘Violence in an offender’s criminal history does not appear to contribute to the sentence imposed,’ the agency said in the report.

The charts used in the study divide the periods between Koon (1998 to 2003); PROTECT (2003-2004); Booker (2005-2007); Gall (2007-2011); and Post-Report (2011-2016).

Koon is a reference to the Supreme Court decision of Koon v. United States, which allowed US federal courts to hand down more lenient sentences than those prescribed by US Sentencing Commission guidelines based on circumstantial factors of an individual case.

That case was an appeal of the 30-month federal sentence handed down to Stacey Koon, one of the four Los Angeles Police Department officers involved in the beating of Rodney King in 1991.

PROTECT refers to The PROTECT Act of 2003, which mandated tougher prison sentences for sex offenders who target children, particularly if they had a prior record.

The Booker period is the one that comes after the United States v. Booker Supreme Court decision.

The Court ruling gave federal judges significantly more discretion on sentencing.

It allowed judges on the bench to determine sentences beyond those called for in US Sentencing Commission guidelines.

Gall refers to the period from 2007 until 2011; and Post-Report refers to the period from 2011 until 2016. …..More Here