Sentencing Law & Policy

The title of this post is the title of this new paper now available via SSRN authored by Sally Evans and Peter Siminski. Here is its abstract: Climate change has stimulated growing interest in the influence of temperature on cognition,... Douglas A. Berman Procedure and Proof at Sentencing Who Sentences

This recent AP story, headlined "Florida prosecutor seeks to clear records of people charged with buying police-made crack in 1980s," highlights how remedies for unconstitutional convictions can often be a very long time in coming (if they come at all).... Douglas A. Berman Drug Offense Sentencing Sentences Reconsidered Who Sentences

Prez-Elect Donald Trump conducted a new interview during which, according to this NBC News piece, he discussed his pardon plans for January 6 defendants. Here is the start of the article: President-elect Donald Trump said he is looking to issue... Douglas A. Berman Clemency and Pardons Sentences Reconsidered Who Sentences

Law360 has this lengthy new piece, headlined "Veterans Courts Help Some, But Leave Many Others Behind," which provides an effective overview of veteran treatment courts and their limits. I recommend the piece in full, and here are excerpts: Veterans treatment... Douglas A. Berman Criminal Sentences Alternatives Offender Characteristics Procedure and Proof at Sentencing Purposes of Punishment and Sentencing

The Supreme Court on Friday arfternoon granted cert via this order list in two new matters. One case, Rivers v. Lumpkin, involves an issue of modern federal habeas procedure. Here is how this cert petition, filed on behalf of a... Douglas A. Berman Procedure and Proof at Sentencing Sentences Reconsidered Who Sentences

Politico has this new article providing another account of how Prez-Elect Donald Trump's Jan 6 pardon pledges are echoing through Jan 6 criminal cases. The full title of the piece captures its themes: "Judges push back as Trump’s return sparks... Douglas A. Berman Clemency and Pardons Offense Characteristics Sentences Reconsidered Who Sentences

The title of this post is the title of this new paper authored by Joel Johnson now available via SSRN. Here is its abstract: There is a fundamental connection between the historic rule of lenity and the new major questions... Douglas A. Berman Offense Characteristics Procedure and Proof at Sentencing Purposes of Punishment and Sentencing Who Sentences

The question in the title of this post is promoted by this new piece from Lisel Petis over at R Street, which is titled "Move over progressive prosecutors, pragmatic prosecutors are the new 'it' thing." Though I have never been... Douglas A. Berman Procedure and Proof at Sentencing Purposes of Punishment and Sentencing Who Sentences

A number of notable and mostly disheartening press pieces aabout prison realities caught my eye this week, and here is a round up: From the AP, "The US government is closing a women’s prison and other facilities after years of... Douglas A. Berman Prisons and prisoners

As reported in this CNN piece, a "federal judge on Thursday rejected a plea agreement between Boeing and the US government after the company said it would plead guilty to deceiving the Federal Aviation Administration ahead of two fatal 737... Douglas A. Berman Offense Characteristics Procedure and Proof at Sentencing Victims' Rights At Sentencing Who Sentences

Via email yesterday afternoon, I received news of a number of new items coming from the US Sentencing Commission. Drawing text and links from the email, here are just some of items with a few links: Notice of Public Meeting... Douglas A. Berman Federal Sentencing Guidelines Who Sentences

The title of this post is the title of this new paper authored by Julian Cook available via SSRN. Here is its abstract: Too often, the guilty plea hearing process practiced in our federal courts fails to adequately ensure the... Douglas A. Berman FIRST STEP Act and its implementation Procedure and Proof at Sentencing Sentences Reconsidered Who Sentences

In this post on Monday, I flagged a lot of early commentary focused on Prez Biden's decision Sunday night to pardon his son Hunter. There has been, unsurprisingly, continuing discussion of this pardon and its echoes. One theme to the... Douglas A. Berman Clemency and Pardons Sentences Reconsidered Who Sentences

The folks at Prison Policy Initiative have made an annual tradition of releasing a significant report looking forward to reform policy and politics in the new year. The latest variation, available here, is titled "Winnable criminal justice reforms in 2025,"... Douglas A. Berman Elections and sentencing issues in political debates

The title of this post is the title of this new book chapter authored by Mark White and available via SSRN. Here is its abstract: Philosophers of punishment have paid little attention to resource constraints, which have an undeniable impact... Douglas A. Berman Purposes of Punishment and Sentencing Recommended reading

As reported in this AP article, Missouri this evening completed an execution of a man who sexually assaulted and strangled a 9-year-old girl in 2007. Here are some of the details: Rowan Ford knew Christopher Collings as “Uncle Chris” after... Douglas A. Berman Death Penalty Reforms

The title of this post is the title of this new paper authored by David Shapiro and Molly Bernstein available via SSRN. Here is its abstract: Properly understood, the “cruel or unusual” punishment clause of the Michigan Constitution grants every... Douglas A. Berman Procedure and Proof at Sentencing Scope of Imprisonment Sentences Reconsidered

I was inclined to wait a bit before doing a round up of commentary on Prez Biden's decision last night to pardon his son Hunter. (For the record, I suspect Prez Biden made the decision to pardon Hunter a long... Douglas A. Berman Clemency and Pardons Who Sentences

Via email I received work of this this new briefing from the Prison Policy Initiative, completed in collaboration with the Jail Data Initiative, which offers broad data on jail admissions and populations. The full title of this briefing provides a... Douglas A. Berman Data on sentencing Prisons and prisoners Race, Class, and Gender Scope of Imprisonment

My post title not only reflects my Ozian mood, but also my effort to get extra attention for this last banger post by Jonathan Wroblewski over at the Sentencing Matters substack. The post lurks under the sly simple query in... Douglas A. Berman Criminal justice in the Biden Administration Criminal justice in the Trump Administration Mandatory minimum sentencing statutes Procedure and Proof at Sentencing White-collar sentencing Who Sentences