Home -> Law Blog Directory -> Criminal Law Blogs -> Sentencing Law and Policy

Criminal Law

: Sentencing Law and Policy

Looooong Second Circuit ruling finds below-guideline sentences unreasonable

By Douglas A. Berman

In a long opinion that discusses Booker and Gall at length, the Second Circuit today in US v. Cutler, No. 05-2516 (2d Cir. Mar. 17, 2008) (available here), reverses a pair of below-guideline sentences as both procedurally and substantively unreasonable.  Here is how the majority opinion, per Judge Kearse, ends (on page 77!):We have considered and found to be without merit the arguments of Cutler and Freedman in opposition to the government's appeal and cross-appeal, respectively, challenging the sentences imposed on them.  Given the procedural errors, the clear factual errors, and the misinterpretations of the ?? 3553(a) factors discussed above ??? in particular of the needs to provide just punishment, to afford adequate deterrence of crimes by others, to avoid unwarranted disparities among similarly situated defendants, and to promote respect for the law ??? we conclude that the court's sentence on Cutler insofar as it ordered him to serve a relatively short term of imprisonment, and its sentence on Freedman insofar as it imposed no term of imprisonment, are substantively unreasonable and constituted an abuse of discretion...continue to full post

Full post as published by Sentencing Law and Policy on March 17, 2008 (boomark / email).