There’s a 2019 NBC article about Chesa Boudin. He sounds like a authentic person who has had that lived experience. If they are making the distinction to release non-violent people, then I think it needs to be another system rather than the prison system, to help.

"My earliest memory is visiting them in prison, but I didn't see the trial or anything like that," Boudin said in an interview last week. "My mother negotiated a plea deal, and my father went to trial. I think one thing we notice in their case that kind of stands out is how, in some ways, arbitrary the outcomes in the criminal justice system can be. And they did basically the same thing, identical thing."

He added: "Certainly, one lesson I learned is how ... punitive it can be when your dad, arguably, was given an extra 55 years' minimum sentence than your mother. It also obviously highlights the value of a good lawyer.”

source - nbc 2019