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Though it is not technically mid-summer, I am on a mid-summer trip that will leave me relatively little time for blogging for the rest of this week. (In addition, when I have some spare time this week, there is a... Douglas A. Berman Recommended reading

Recent decades has brought considerable concerns about so-called "school-to-prison" pipelines, a term meant to lament certain educational policies and practices that serve to enhance the prosepcts of some students being caught up in criminal justice systems. But this new Marhsall... Douglas A. Berman Death Penalty Reforms Offender Characteristics

The New York Times has two notable new articles covering the controversies surrounding former Prez Biden's late-term clemencies and compentencies. Here are the pieces: "Biden Says He Made the Clemency Decisions That Were Recorded With Autopen" "Excerpts From The Times’s... Douglas A. Berman Clemency and Pardons Criminal justice in the Biden Administration Who Sentences

The title of this post is the title of this article authored by Cassia Spohn in the June 2025 issue of the Criminal Law Forum. (As noted in this prior post, this journal issue is devoted to celebrating the work... Douglas A. Berman Recommended reading

This New York Times opinion piece, titled "Governors, Use Your Clemency Powers" and authored by Steve Zeidman, focuses on the need for states' chief executives to step up their clemency work. The piece is worth a full read (though it... Douglas A. Berman Clemency and Pardons Sentences Reconsidered Who Sentences

The title of this post is the title of this new article now available via SSRN and authored by Charles Hintz. Here is its abstract: Federal habeas is a mess. The reason is the current doctrine’s myopic proceduralism: its obsession... Douglas A. Berman Procedure and Proof at Sentencing Sentences Reconsidered

In the latest chapter of a long running saga, a panel of the DC Circuit today upheld the authority of then-Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin to withdraw from plea agreements with three of the 9/11 defendants. The start of the... Douglas A. Berman Death Penalty Reforms Sentences Reconsidered Who Sentences

The title of this post is the title of this new article now available via SSRN authored by Talia Roitberg Harmon, Michael L. Perlin, Maren Geiger, Lea Roitberg and Stacy Bielic. Here is its abstract: The United States Supreme Court... Douglas A. Berman Death Penalty Reforms Offender Characteristics Procedure and Proof at Sentencing

This new ABC News piece reports that the "judge who oversaw the trial of Sean 'Diddy' Combs has asked both sides in the case to provide him with sentencing information ahead of the scheduled October sentencing date." Here is more:... Douglas A. Berman Celebrity sentencings Federal Sentencing Guidelines Procedure and Proof at Sentencing

The US Sentencing Commission in recent weeks has released a bunch more of its terrific "Quick Facts" publications. As regular readers know, I find so very interesting all the these short data documents, which are designed to "give readers basic... Douglas A. Berman Data on sentencing Detailed sentencing data Federal Sentencing Guidelines

I am pleased to see the launch of a new column at SCOTUSblog, being called "ScotusCrim" and being authored by Rory Little to focus "on intersections between the Supreme Court and criminal law." The initial installment is titled "The criminal... Douglas A. Berman Sentences Reconsidered Who Sentences

The folks at The Sentencing Project released this new 36-page report about two states' experiences with in-prison voting. Here are excerpts from the report's executive symmary: Only two U.S. states – Maine and Vermont – do not disrupt the voting... Douglas A. Berman Collateral consequences Prisons and prisoners

The title of this post is the title of this new paper just posted to SSRN and authored by Dennis D. Hirsch, Jared Ott, Angie Westover-Munoz and Chris Yaluma. Here is its abstract: Federal and state criminal justice systems use... Douglas A. Berman Procedure and Proof at Sentencing Technocorrections Who Sentences

I have lately been making it a quarterly habit of highlighted essays from Inquest, "a decarceral brainstorm," and so here is the latest installment of just some recent pieces on an array of topics that sentencing fans may want to... Douglas A. Berman Recommended reading

I gave a talk some years ago, which later became this essay, that discussed why "sentencing is dang hard." That work came to mind as I started thinking about what Judge Arun Subramanian will be facing as he prepares to... Douglas A. Berman

In recent posts about recent exections, I have noted that the US as a whole is on pace for more executions in 2025 than in any year in more than a decade. Against that backdrop, I was interested to see... Douglas A. Berman Death Penalty Reforms

As noted in this prior post, the US Sentencing Commission released in early June this Federal Register notice of its possible policy priorities for the guideline amendment cycle ending May 1, 2026. The USSC requested receiving formal public comment on... Douglas A. Berman Federal Sentencing Guidelines Who Sentences

The title of this post is the title of this article authored by Richard Frase in the June 2025 issue of the Criminal Law Forum. (As noted in this prior post, this journal issue is devoted to celebrating the work... Douglas A. Berman Purposes of Punishment and Sentencing Recommended reading

This lengthy new Slate commentary laments an array of policy and practical developments in federal prisons to argue that "[s]ince his first day in office, the Trump administration has thrown the lives of incarcerated people into chaos — especially the... Douglas A. Berman Criminal justice in the Trump Administration Prisons and prisoners

We are still a year away from a very big anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, but criminal justice fans can finb a lot to celebrate today on July 4, 2025. As I have been highlighting in... Douglas A. Berman National and State Crime Data Prisons and prisoners Scope of Imprisonment