AP Photo Reid: Kochs want justice reform because of past legal woes

The billionaire Koch brothers are interested in criminal justice reform because of their past legal troubles, Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid charged on Tuesday.

In his latest broadside at David and Charles Koch, Reid suggested that the wealthy conservatives are working across party lines on sentencing reform and the reversing the "overcriminalization of America" because they have a personal stake in changing the legal system.


"I'm glad they're on the right side of something finally. Could be that one reason they're interested in this is because they have been in the past prosecuted for doing some things that have been illegal ... And they fought back," Reid said on the Senate floor. "They are embracing reform now, but it does not negate the many bad things they're doing to hurt American families."

Reid was referring to Koch Industries employees being indicted for violating environmental laws in the 1990s and millions in subsequent fines paid by the company. Top Koch officials have said the experience motivated the Kochs to push for criminal justice reform. A spokesman for Koch Industries declined to comment on Reid's remarks.

Reid said the Kochs are using only a "tiny bit" of their fortune to advance the cause. Last week a bipartisan group of senators reached a deal on criminal justice reform, viewed as a major step toward changing incarceration rates and mandatory minimum sentences.

During the last election cycle, the Nevada Democrat lambasted the Kochs as billionaires trying to buy political influence through massive campaign spending. Reid has made clear he'll continue that line of attack during his last 15 months in the Senate.