Sentencing Law & Policy

A divided Michigan Supreme Court, splitting 5-2, ruled earlier this week in Michigan v. Lymon, No. 164685 (Mich. Julu 29, 2024) (available here), that its state constitution precluded putting people convicted of non-sexual crimes on the state's sex-offender registry. Here... Douglas A. Berman Offense Characteristics Procedure and Proof at Sentencing Reentry and community supervision Sex Offender Sentencing Who Sentences

In this post last year, I noted that families of 9/11 victims had been notified that military prosecutors and defense lawyers were exploring plea deals for certain defendants that would take the death penalty off the table. Last night, as... Douglas A. Berman Procedure and Proof at Sentencing Who Sentences

As reported in this local article, a "majority on the S.C. Supreme Court has ruled that allowing death row inmates the choice of the electric chair or firing squad to carry out their sentences does not constitute cruel and unusual... Douglas A. Berman Baze and Glossip lethal injection cases Death Penalty Reforms Sentences Reconsidered Who Sentences

The US Supreme Court in Grants Passlast month turned away claims that the Eighth Amendment precluded charging homeless with crimes from camping/sleeping in certain areas (basics here). There are been an array of legal and political echoes from the ruling,... Douglas A. Berman Offender Characteristics Offense Characteristics Who Sentences

This new Washington Post piece discusses the long-standing and extreme problem of extreme heat in US prisons and jails. The full headline of this piece highlights its essentials: "For inmates, little escape from brutal heat in prisons without air conditioning:... Douglas A. Berman Prisons and prisoners

The title of this post is the title of this new article just published in the journal Theoretical Criminology and authored by Michelle Phelps and Eric Seligman. Here is its abstract: The transformation of US punishment in the late 20th... Douglas A. Berman Purposes of Punishment and Sentencing Reentry and community supervision

The Death Penalty Information Center (DPIC) recently posted here an interesting analysis of "all 82 grants of clemency to individual death-sentenced prisoners between 1977-2023, excluding mass clemency grants." Here is how D{IC summarizes its findings at the start of the... Douglas A. Berman Clemency and Pardons Death Penalty Reforms Sentences Reconsidered Who Sentences

The title of this post is the title of this short document prepared by the Congressional Research Service. The document is notable mostly for its review of marijuana's existing criminal and collateral consequences than for a review of the implication... Douglas A. Berman Drug Offense Sentencing Marijuana Legalization in the States Offense Characteristics Pot Prohibition Issues Who Sentences

I fully understand why the Supreme Court and its Justices get so much attention. But I also know that anyone deeply concerned about federal jurisprudence, especially as it relates to criminal justice administration, must also attend to the work and... Douglas A. Berman Who Sentences

The title of this post is the headline of this new Washington Post editorial. Here are excerpts: There’s encouraging news about crime rates in the United States. After a spike in both violent crime and property offenses after the pandemic-and-protest... Douglas A. Berman Data on sentencing National and State Crime Data

About a week ago, a commentor started a comment this way: "Wow. Every single time I look at comments in hopes of more insight into the main subject, all I get is a handful of cheap shots at the political... Douglas A. Berman On blogging

The title of this post is the title of this article recently posted to SSRN authored by Utsav Bahl, Chad M. Topaz and others. Here is its abstract: Judicial and carceral systems increasingly use criminal risk assessment algorithms to make... Douglas A. Berman Offender Characteristics Procedure and Proof at Sentencing Race, Class, and Gender State Sentencing Guidelines Technocorrections Who Sentences

As detailed in this official announcement, two weeks from today is the scheduled date for a big official public meeting for the US Sentencing Commission to take big votes on two sets of important issues. Here is the full announcement:... Douglas A. Berman Federal Sentencing Guidelines Who Sentences

A helpful reader alerted me to a new panel ruling from the Third Circuit in Baker v. US, No. 23-2059 (3d Cir. July 25, 2024) (available here). The start of the extended opinion highlights why it seems to me notable:... Douglas A. Berman Mandatory minimum sentencing statutes Procedure and Proof at Sentencing

The title of this post is the title of this new article authored by Jane Mitchell now available via SSRN. Here is its abstract: In today's polarized political climate, criminal justice reform remains one of the few issues that spans... Douglas A. Berman Criminal Sentences Alternatives Purposes of Punishment and Sentencing

The Council on Criminal Justice (CCJ) today released its latest accoutning of recent crime trends through this new report titled "Crime Trends in U.S. Cities: Mid-Year 2024 Update." Here are the encouraging essentials from the the report's "Overview": This study... Douglas A. Berman National and State Crime Data Offense Characteristics

Stateline has this new piece on the growing interest at the state level of second-look sentencing reviews. The piece is worth a full read, though its themes are summarized in the full headline: "Efforts to release prisoners from long sentences... Douglas A. Berman Procedure and Proof at Sentencing Sentences Reconsidered Who Sentences

The title of this post is the title of this new article recently published in The British Journal of Criminology authored by Veronica Horowitz, Synøve Andersen and Jordan Hyatt. Here is its abstract: As the COVID-19 pandemic upended life worldwide,... Douglas A. Berman Impact of the coronavirus on criminal justice Prisons and prisoners

The Sentencing Project today released this updated six-page fact sheet titled "Incarcerated Women and Girls." The document has lots of data and graphics providing details of how and why "female incarcerated population stands almost seven times higher than in 1980."... Douglas A. Berman Data on sentencing Prisons and prisoners Race, Class, and Gender Scope of Imprisonment

As noted in this post last month, the US Sentencing Commission recently released a "Federal Register Notice of Proposed 2024-2025 Priorities" which suggested that the USSC was eager in this coming guideline-amendment year to take a "big-picture" look at the... Douglas A. Berman Federal Sentencing Guidelines Purposes of Punishment and Sentencing Who Sentences