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Sentencing Law and Policy 
News, issues, commentary and provides resources related to sentencing law and policy.
Post Frequency: 77.7/day Last Entry: April 01, 2011 at 10:54:24 Recent Entries: 4815
By Douglas A. Berman
Go to Sentencing Law and Policy, find other Criminal Law blogs, or browse all law blogs.
Sixth Circuit summarily (and wrongly?) decides that sentencing changes in Fair Sentencing Act not applicable to pre-change crime
Posted on September 20, 2010At the end of a seemingly minor opinion, the Sixth Circuit today in US v. Carradine, No. 08-3220 (6th Cir. Sept. 20, 2010) (available here), addresses a major issue for any and all defendants hoping to get the an immediate...
Will North Carolina's death penalty get killed by its Racial Justice Act?
Posted on September 20, 2010The question in the title of this post is inspired by this effective new piece in the Wall Street Journal titled "Death Penalty Goes on Trial in North Carolina." Here are excerpts: Last year, North Carolina enacted what's known as...
"America, Land of the Imprisoned"
Posted on September 20, 2010The title of this post is the headline of this notable commentary from a site called "The Libertarian Solution." Here is how it starts: The United States has one of the most the most expansive, punitive and expensive criminal justice...
Local perspective on the impact of new reduced crack sentences
Posted on September 20, 2010This local story from Indiana, which is headlined "Crack, powder cocaine nearer equal footing," provides an interesting local view on some of the consequences of the new federal sentencing laws for crack offenses. Here are excerpts: Two months after Congress...
Plea deal lets Virginia quadruple-murderer escape death penalty (with approval of victims' relatives)
Posted on September 20, 2010This local story from Virginia, which is headlined "Quadruple murderer avoids death penalty with plea deal," provides a number of cross-cutting perspectives on the administration of the death penalty. Here are the factual basics: The suspect in the quadruple homicide...
Missouri's new practice of providing judges sentence cost information now fit to print
Posted on September 19, 2010Today's New York Times includes this effective article, headlined "Missouri Tells Judges Cost of Sentences," which spreads the news on the latest state sentencing innovation. Here is how the article starts: When judges here sentence convicted criminals, a new and...
Can dismissed domestic violence complaint justify revoking gun permit?
Posted on September 18, 2010This local story from Massachusetts provides an interesting spin on both "sentencing" based on dismissed charges and the Second Amendment rights of those accused of violent behavior. The piece is headlined "Man challenges state gun law: Constitutionality of 2005 permit...
"Georgia capital cases in US Supreme Court crosshairs"
Posted on September 18, 2010The title of this post is the headline of this new AP article, which gets started this way: The U.S. Supreme Court has stepped into four Georgia death penalty cases in the last year or so, and it could yet...
Massachusetts SJC splits over when GPS tracking can be added to sex offender sentence
Posted on September 18, 2010As detailed in this local article, which is headlined "GPS tracking limited by SJC: Rules in case of sex offender; Sets conditions for probation use," a split high court in Massachusetts concluded yesterday that state judges "cannot change probation conditions...
Quick textual reflections on Constitution Day
Posted on September 17, 2010Today, September 17, is the 221st anniversary of the day in 1789 when the Constitutional Convention officially submitted its proposed constitution to the people of the United States. To honor the day, I thought I might quoting some of the...
"Marijuana law reform is a civil rights issue"
Posted on September 17, 2010The title of this post is the headline of this commentary appearing in the San Francisco Chronicle and authored by Alice Huffman, the president of the California State NAACP. Here is how it starts and ends: "Injustice anywhere is a...
"Feds seek to halt inmate's frequent lawsuits"
Posted on September 17, 2010The title of this post is the headline of this recent amusing AP article. Here is how it starts: A federal inmate who has filed more than 3,800 lawsuits and targeted the famous, the infamous and even the long-dead is...
Symbol and substance in crack sentencing reform
Posted on September 17, 2010The Oakland Tribune has this lengthy and interesting new article headlined "Though largely symbolic, crack-powder cocaine law change seen as social victory." Here are excerpts: On Aug. 3, President Barack Obama addressed that disparity at the federal level when he...
Virginia's Governor denies clemency for female condemned murderer
Posted on September 17, 2010As detailed in this local article, headlined "Gov. McDonnell refuses to block execution of Teresa Lewis," the Governor of Virginia is not going to grant clemency to a high-profile defendant due to be executed next week. Here are the details:...
"Criminal Justice & Religion"
Posted on September 16, 2010The title of this post is the title of a book chapter that is now available in proof form here via SSRN. The named author of the chapter is SpearIt (a nom de plum for Supremecy Clause?), and here is...
Restitution terms debated in another federal child porn downloading sentencing
Posted on September 16, 2010As detailed in this new article from the Kansas City Star, which is headlined "Long prison sentence, restitution sought in child porn case," federal district court around the country continue to confront the challenging and unsettled issue of whether and...
"Implementing (or Nullifying) Atkins?: The Impact of State Procedural Choices on Outcome in Capital Cases Where Intellectual Disability is at Issue"
Posted on September 16, 2010The title of this post is the title of this notable new article available via SSRN authored by John Blume, Sheri Lynn Johnson and Christopher Seeds. Here is the abstract: This empirical study assesses the impact of state procedural choices...
"Partial Settlement Reached in Pa. 'Sexting' Case"
Posted on September 16, 2010The title of this post is the headline of this new piece in The Legal Intelligencer, which provides an update on the highest-profile "sexting" case to date. Here is how the piece begins: One of the high school students at...
"Should a Judge Consider the Cost of a Sentence?"
Posted on September 16, 2010The title of this post is the headline of this effective new piece at ABC News discussing Missouri's fascinating new sentencing tool providing "case-by-case invoices" of punishment costs to judges at the time they make sentencing decisions (details here)...
What will USSC do given that DOJ and the Judicial Conference oppose retroactivity for new criminal history rules
Posted on September 16, 2010As detailed here, the US Sentencing Commission has a public meeting scheduled today at which it will possibly vote whether to give retroactive effect to its new amendment to reduce the impact of "recency" as a factor in the calculation...
Government reports that drug use is up ... let the spin begin
Posted on September 16, 2010As detailed in this new AP story, the "rate of illegal drug use rose last year to the highest level in nearly a decade, fueled by a sharp increase in marijuana use and a surge in ecstasy and methamphetamine abuse,...
North Carolina clergy urging end to state's use of capital punishment
Posted on September 15, 2010Religion and sentencing are mixing again in North Carolina, as detailed in this local article headlined "Asheville pastors: SBI crime lab woes show need to eliminate death penalty." Here are the basics: North Carolina's criminal justice system is so fraught...
"NBC's outlandish 'Outlaw' richly deserves death penalty"
Posted on September 15, 2010In part because the headline mentions the death penalty, and in part because it readily allows me (and perhaps others) to save space on my DVR, I had to link and quote this amusing review in USA Today about one...
Will a "national call-in day" help pass the National Criminal Justice Commission Act?
Posted on September 15, 2010As detailed here via the folks at Families Against Mandatory Minimums, a number of public policy groups have denominated today as "National Call-In Day" in support of S. 714, which is the National Criminal Justice Commission Act, that passed the...
"Crime is down, but for how long?"
Posted on September 15, 2010The question in the title of this post is the headline of this interesting commentary responding to the latest good news from the FBI concerning crime rates: Apparently, it is now official -- crime has taken an extended holiday. Yesterday,...
"Zapping Inmates To Control Them: Harmless Or Torture?"
Posted on September 14, 2010The title of this post is the headline of this recent NPR story which discusses the latest hot new technology that hopes to help to keep prisoners in line. Here are excerpts: Los Angeles authorities have unveiled a new high-tech...
"Confessing to Crime, but Innocent"
Posted on September 14, 2010The title of this post is the headline of this piece in today's New York Times. Here are excerpts: [M]ore than 40 [persons] have given confessions since 1976 that DNA evidence later showed were false, according to records compiled by...
Violent crime rates continuing to drop, according to latest FBI numbers
Posted on September 14, 2010More good news this year on crime rates, as detailed in this Reuters report on the latest data from the FBI: Violent crime in the United States fell in 2009 for the third straight year, with the number of murders...
Show-Me State now showing sentencing judges information about the costs of punishments
Posted on September 14, 2010The St. Louis Post-Dispatch has this fascinating new article headlined "Missouri judges get penalty cost before sentencing." Here is how it begins: Justice in Missouri now comes with a price tag. It is the first state to provide judges with...
"Racial Disparity in the Wake of the Booker/Fanfan Decision: An Alternative Analysis to the USSC?s 2010 Report"
Posted on September 14, 2010The title of this post is the title of this notable new paper from a set of criminologists that is now available via SSRN. Here is the abstract: The U.S. Sentencing Commission (USSC) released a report in March 2010 concluding...
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I have worked for this employer for only three weeks. The employer makes up his own rules as to what he chooses to report for the purpose of property taxes. He tells me to "let them come after us". He defines Entertain
He arrogantly insists, "let them come after us." Well, if you are invo...
I was fired on June 3, 2002 in Massachusetts because I reported discriminatory behavior by the employer towards a particular nationality. In July I filed a discrimination/retaliation complaint against the employer with t
It seem sin your case that the fact you filed the complaint prior to being dissa...
Does failure to provide health insurance benefits at the time promised constitute harm to the employee?
Yes. Failure to provide health insurance benefits is a violation of Labor Law ob...
My job requires me to drive bank deposits up to two times a day using my own vehicle and gas. Although not too far, can should I be receiving compensation? One deposit run is required daily by company policy, but the man
you should be getting a mileage comp. I own my own company and I pay my employee...
Can i sue my employer for breach of Contract?
i would suggest you get professional advice
from what you have put here yo...
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