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New Mitigation "Guidelines"

By Kent Scheidegger et al.

Hofstra Law Review has an entire issue on the "Supplementary Guidelines for the Mitigation Function of Defense Teams In Death Penalty Cases." (Hat tip: SL&P.) Unlike the American Bar Association, which at least pretends to represent the entire bar, these guidelines are a purely defense-side effort. The defense side was successful in getting the Supreme Court to delegate to the ABA the power to amend the Constitution of United States by saying in Wiggins v. Smith, 539 U.S. 510 (2003) that it would look to ABA guidelines to decide what the Sixth Amendment requires in capital defense. The goal here appears to be to convince courts to let the defense side dispense with even the pretense of letting other segments of the bar have a say and decide on its own what is required...continue to full post

Full post as published by Crime and Consequences on July 09, 2008 (boomark / email).