Sentencing Law & Policy

As noted in this post, on Tuesday of this week, Missouri and Texas completed executions of condemned murderers. Today, it was Alabama and Oklahoma carrying out executions. Here are press accounts: From AL.com, "Alabama inmate Alan Miller executed with nitrogen... Douglas A. Berman Baze and Glossip lethal injection cases Death Penalty Reforms

I just saw this week this (new?) website, called "State Constitution Tool." In a brief foray, I have found this resource pretty easy to navigate as a means to find state constitutional provisions related to a particular topic, such as... Douglas A. Berman Recommended reading State Sentencing Guidelines

The title of this post is the title of this new essay authored by Mark William Osler now available via SSRN (and forthcoming in the Federal Sentencing Reporter). Here is its abstract: Baked into the mechanism for determining sentences in... Douglas A. Berman Drug Offense Sentencing Federal Sentencing Guidelines

Two states completed executions last night. Here are the basics from news accounts: From CNN, "Missouri executes Marcellus Williams despite prosecutors and the victim’s family asking that he be spared": Marcellus Williams, whose murder conviction was questioned by a prosecutor,... Douglas A. Berman Baze and Glossip lethal injection cases Death Penalty Reforms

As reported in this CNBC article, "Caroline Ellison, the star witness in the prosecution of her former boyfriend, FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, was sentenced Tuesday in New York federal court to two years in prison and ordered to forfeit $11... Douglas A. Berman Offender Characteristics Offense Characteristics Procedure and Proof at Sentencing White-collar sentencing

For whatever reason, I am noticing a number of notable recent sentencing stories involving pets and aninals. A couple of weeks ago, I blogged here about notable federal sentences given to criminal cat kickers, and a few days ago I... Douglas A. Berman Offense Characteristics Scope of Imprisonment

The title of this post is the title of this new essay authored by Sam Merchant now available via SSRN (and forthcoming in the Federal Sentencing Reporter). Here is its abstract: This Essay explores the traditional view that judges exercise... Douglas A. Berman Federal Sentencing Guidelines Procedure and Proof at Sentencing Who Sentences

The title of this post is the title of this new essay authored by Sam Merchant now available via SSRN (and forthcoming in the Federal Sentencing Reporter). Here is its abstract: This Essay explores the traditional view that judges exercise... Douglas A. Berman Federal Sentencing Guidelines Procedure and Proof at Sentencing Who Sentences

The title of this post is the title of this new essay authored by Sam Merchant now available via SSRN (and forthcoming in the Federal Sentencing Reporter). Here is its abstract: This Essay explores the traditional view that judges exercise... Douglas A. Berman Federal Sentencing Guidelines Procedure and Proof at Sentencing Who Sentences

Adam Liptak's latest Sidebar column in the New York Times, headlined "Supreme Court’s Gun Rulings Leave Baffled Judges Asking for Help," is focused on the mess that is Second Amendment jurisprudence. I recommend the piece in full, and here are... Douglas A. Berman Gun policy and sentencing Second Amendment issues Who Sentences

The FBI this morning here released this summary accounting of violent crime in the United States in 2023: The FBI’s crime statistics estimates, based on reported data for 2023, show that national violent crime decreased an estimated 3.0% in 2023... Douglas A. Berman National and State Crime Data Offense Characteristics

As noted here a few months ago, this summer I helped create a Substack place and space for sentencing discussions titled Sentencing Matters Substack. It dawned on me recently that I have not been regularly flagging all the interesting original... Douglas A. Berman Recommended reading

A couple of weeks ago, I blogged here about notable federal sentences cgiven to criminal cat kickers. Today, I say a notable state sentencing sentences in response criminal dog behavior, though in this case it involves fatal results for both... Douglas A. Berman Offense Characteristics

The title of this post is the title of this new paper authored by Laura Rovner now available via SSRN. Here is its abstract: The harms of solitary confinement have been well-documented for centuries, yet the practice persists. Despite recent... Douglas A. Berman Prisons and prisoners Purposes of Punishment and Sentencing Sentences Reconsidered

As reported in this AP piece, "South Carolina put inmate Freddie Owens to death Friday as the state restarted executions after an unintended 13-year pause because prison officials couldn’t get the drugs needed for lethal injections." Here is more: Owens... Douglas A. Berman Baze and Glossip lethal injection cases Death Penalty Reforms

The Fifth Circuit earlier this week added still more nuances to Second Amendment, felon-in-possession jurisprudence through a panel opinion in US v. Diaz, No. 23-50452 (5th Cir. Sept. 18, 2024) (available here). As noted in posts linked below, since the... Douglas A. Berman Offender Characteristics Offense Characteristics Second Amendment issues Who Sentences

Most modern discussions of what is often called "second-look" sentencing typically focus on the opportunities and processes for judges to reconsider on various grounds the duration of the prison sentences they previously imposed. But there is, of course, a kind... Douglas A. Berman Clemency and Pardons Procedure and Proof at Sentencing Sentences Reconsidered Who Sentences

Over the first eight months of 2024, the United States has averaged less than two executions per month. And two executions per month has been, very roughly, the average pace of executions in the US for the past decade. For... Douglas A. Berman Baze and Glossip lethal injection cases Death Penalty Reforms Who Sentences

I am very pleased to be able to promote this updated resource page, "Drugs on the Ballot," authored by the great staff at the Drug Enforcement and Policy Center (DEPC) at The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law. The... Douglas A. Berman Drug Offense Sentencing Marijuana Legalization in the States Pot Prohibition Issues Who Sentences

The title of this post is the title of this new paper available via SSRN authored by Jacob Harris. Here is its abstract: How does the severity of incarceration-not just its occurrence-affect formal political participation? I address this question with... Douglas A. Berman Prisons and prisoners