Sen. Patrick Leahy says he's pleased that Attorney General Eric Holder is calling for a review of mandatory minimum sentences for some drug crimes.
The comments from Leahy, who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee, came after Holder delivered a speech to the American Bar Association in San Francisco in which he called for scaling back mandatory minimum sentences.
Leahy says he thinks long sentences are appropriate in some cases, but he sees reliance on mandatory minimum sentences as a mistake. He says he wants judges to have more flexibility.
And Leahy says he'll hold a hearing of the Senate Judiciary Committee next month on the issue.
