state Rep. Liz Miranda

State Rep. Liz Miranda filed legislation in February of last year that would decriminalize possession of drugs, making it a civil infraction rather than a criminal one. The Rev. Miniard Culpepper, who is running against Miranda for the 2nd Suffolk Senate seat, calls the bill, which was co-sponsored by Cambridge Rep. Mike Connolly and reported favorably out of committee this year, the equivalent of legalizing heroin.

When the Massachusetts Department of Correction announced in June that it would be dissolving its solitary confinement unit over the span of three years, state Rep. Liz Miranda was not satisfied.