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Sentencing Law and Policy 
News, issues, commentary and provides resources related to sentencing law and policy.
Post Frequency: 77.7/day Last Entry: April 01, 2011 at 10:54:24 Recent Entries: 4815
By Douglas A. Berman
Go to Sentencing Law and Policy, find other Criminal Law blogs, or browse all law blogs.
New developments or data from the USSC?
Posted on August 27, 2008The US Sentencing Commission has a public meeting scheduled for Thursday, August 28, 2008, at 1:45 pm. But this official agenda does not give any indication that anything notable is likely to happen, though an outsider can never be sure...
The man behind "smiling bob" not likely smiling after federal sentencing
Posted on August 27, 2008As detailed in this local article, the man who helped give us the character "smiling bob" had a downer federal sentencing today. Here are the details: A federal judge today sentenced the founder of Berkeley Premium Nutraceuticals to 25 years...
Judge Bright gives shout out to Second Chance Act
Posted on August 27, 2008Concurring today in US v. Wessels, No. 07-3208 (8th Cir. Aug. 27, 2008) (available here), Judge Bright gives a little attention to the Second Chance Act. Here are snippets from his opinion: I concur in the opinion in this case...
Wondering what a Justice Clinton might say about sentencing jurisprudence?
Posted on August 27, 2008Though I have not watched all of the Democratic convention, I think I am right to assert that Senator Hillary Clinton was the first headliner to mention the Supreme Court in her speech. (Describing the state of the country, she...
Over four years in prison for failing to register under AWA
Posted on August 27, 2008This local story reports on another federal sentence for a state sex offender who failed to register and thereby violated the new federal Adam Walsh Act. Here are the basics: A Tennessee man convicted earlier this year for failing to...
Dickensian complaint over NJ prison conditions
Posted on August 26, 2008A helpful reader alerted me to this news of a new lawsuit concerning New Jersey's prison conditions, which indirectly touches on many economic issues that surround prison nation. Here are excerpts the article: Conditions out of Charles Dickens' novel beset...
Another reason to believe GPS technocorrections are inevitable
Posted on August 26, 2008As regular readers know, I view GPS tracking and other (cost-saving?) technocorrections as virtually inevitable as society becomes ever-more acclimated to this kind of criminal justice innovation. And this local article, headlined "Ankle Monitors Make the Grade in Texas," provides...
Will crime and punishment get any attention at the Democratic Convention?
Posted on August 25, 2008As national thoughts turn from Olympian achievements to political conventions, I continue to keep an eye on matters of crime and punishment. As noted in this weekend post and by some bloggers, the Biden VP choice has some criminal justice...
"Happiness and Punishment"
Posted on August 25, 2008This title of this post is the title of this intriguing new article available via SSRN. The piece comes from Professors John Bronsteen, Christopher Buccafusco and Jonathan Masur, and here is the abstract: This article continues our project to apply...
Seventh Circuit debates a federal death sentence
Posted on August 25, 2008Today's read of the day has to be US v. Mikos, No. 06-2375 (7th Cir. Aug. 25, 2008) (available here), in which Seventh Circuit Judges Easterbrook and Posner debate over the legality of a federal death sentence. While the legal...
Local data suggesting jail terms increase recidivism
Posted on August 25, 2008This new research report from the Vera Institute of Justice, titled "Assessing the Effectiveness of Intermediate Sanctions in Multnomah County, Oregon," provides some interesting data on the use various sanctions when offenders violate the conditions of their probation or post-prison...
Still more evidence it's the prison economy, stupid
Posted on August 25, 2008This article from this weekend's New York Times highlights the important connection between economic realities and prison nation. Here is how the piece starts: When residents here heard that the governor wanted to close the 137-year-old Pontiac Correctional Center, taking...
Effective review of federal uptick in child-porn prosecutions
Posted on August 24, 2008In today's San Jose Mercury News is this effective article, headlined "Feds push child-porn cases; penalty can be years in prison." Here are excerpts: Just a few mouse clicks into the forbidden world of Internet child porn can transform an...
Senator Biden, crime and punishment
Posted on August 23, 2008Now that Barack Obama has finally made his VP choice official, I am starting to think about what this decision might mean for what a President Obama would do on the crime and punishment front. Jeralyn at TalkLeft is all...
Should a naked jogging priest be labelled a sex offender?
Posted on August 22, 2008Thanks to this post by Corey Yung, I came across this commentary piece, headlined "The dilution of a sex offender: Making the term apply to non-sex-offenders a scary proposition." Here is a section of the piece that prmopts the question...
Big crack arguments before Eleventh Circuit
Posted on August 22, 2008Thanks to law.com, we can now all read this effective article from the Fulton County Daily Report headlined "Crack Resentencing Controversy Comes Before 11th Circuit." Here is how the piece starts: Today, two of the most controversial issues in sentencing...
Sex in the (host) city
Posted on August 22, 2008This story from ABC News captures one of many reasons why I am often so troubled that so many politicians are so eager to demonize so many sex offenders without being tough on their own: Prostitution in Denver and Minneapolis...
Split California Supreme Court ruling on parole consideration
Posted on August 21, 2008As detailed in this Los Angeles Times article, the "California Supreme Court made it easier today for prison inmates to win parole over a governor's objections. In a 4-3 vote, the state high court said the brutality of a convict's...
Iowa prosecutors trying to ensure teens practice safe cell
Posted on August 21, 2008This story from Iowa about a teen being prosecuted for modern cyber-locker-room talk is remarkable for many reasons. Here are just some of the highlights: High school senior Andy Dougherty sent a 17-year-old buddy a 10-second cell phone video that...
Is education the best way to fight crime? And why aren't these topics linked more in political discourse?
Posted on August 21, 2008Over at The Faculty Lounge, Dan Filler has this great new post titled "Education In A Crime Control Frame." Here are snippets: A national organization called Fight Crime: Invest in Kids is pushing a new study showing that a ten...
"The government?s argument that it honored its promises reeks of the lamp."
Posted on August 21, 2008The title of this post is a sentence from an interesting Tenth Circuit opinion issued yesterday in US v. Villa-Vazquez, No. 07-3160 (10th Cir. Aug. 20, 2008) (available here). The Tenth Circuit in this case finds that federal prosecutors "blatantly...
Extended discussion of restitution by Second Circuit
Posted on August 21, 2008Today in US v. Amato, No. 06-5600 (2d Cir. Aug. 21, 2008) (available here), the Second Circuit had occassion to discuss federal criminal restitution. Here is a snippet from the start of the opinion: Restitution is a complex subject because...
Costs discussed in Maryland debate over death
Posted on August 21, 2008As highlighted in this DPIC post, the Maryland Commission on Capital Punishment has begun hearing testimony from a variety of folks concerning the state's death penalty system. And, as detailed in this Washington Post article, earlier this week the discussion...
"Desert and the Eighth Amendment"
Posted on August 20, 2008The title of this post is the title of this new paper from Professor Youngjae Lee available via SSRN. Here is the abstract: What would a constitutional right based on desert look like? If "the people" believe that, say, child...
Tenth Circuit discusses loss, restitution and other white-collar issues of note
Posted on August 20, 2008In a long opinion (108 pages!) covering lots of ground, the Tenth Circuit today in US v. Gallant, No. 07-1344 (10th Cir. Aug. 20, 2008) (available here), discusses a host of notable and important white-collar crime and sentencing issues. The...
En banc proceedings and reasonableness review
Posted on August 20, 2008A helpful reader informed me that the Third Circuit yesterday granted rehearing en banc in US v. Tomko (panel decision blogged here), a case in which a panel members had written at length about reasonableness when reviewing a probation sentence...
Do special procedures help preserve the US death penalty?
Posted on August 20, 2008I just came across on SSRN this interesting-looking paper by William Berry, titled "American Procedural Exceptionalism: A Deterrent or Catalyst for Death Penalty Abolition?". Here is the abstract: This article offers a new theory to explain the persistence of the...
Fifth Circuit affirms, after Gall GVR, a probation sentence in child porn downloading case
Posted on August 19, 2008A helpful reader sent along this head's up about an important new ruling released today by the Fifth Circuit: I thought you'd be interested in the opinion out of the Fifth Circuit in US v. Duhon, No. 05-30387 (5th Cir....
Two for Tuesday from the Seventh Circuit on sentencing
Posted on August 19, 2008The Seventh Circuit has handed down two notable and lengthy sentencing rulings today: US v. Carter, No. 07-2438 (7th Cir. Aug. 19, 2008) (available here) US v. Clark, No. 07-1297 (7th Cir. Aug. 19, 2008) (available here) Though both rulings...
Jail talk around the blogosphere
Posted on August 19, 2008Folks who follow jail issues will want to check out these recent posts on jail issues come from some of my favorite blogs: From Grits for Breakfast here, "Dallas County scrounging for 'loose change' on jail costs but ignores potential...
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you should be getting a mileage comp. I own my own company and I pay my employee...
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I have worked for this employer for only three weeks. The employer makes up his own rules as to what he chooses to report for the purpose of property taxes. He tells me to "let them come after us". He defines Entertain
He arrogantly insists, "let them come after us." Well, if you are invo...
I was fired on June 3, 2002 in Massachusetts because I reported discriminatory behavior by the employer towards a particular nationality. In July I filed a discrimination/retaliation complaint against the employer with t
It seem sin your case that the fact you filed the complaint prior to being dissa...
Does failure to provide health insurance benefits at the time promised constitute harm to the employee?
Yes. Failure to provide health insurance benefits is a violation of Labor Law ob...
My job requires me to drive bank deposits up to two times a day using my own vehicle and gas. Although not too far, can should I be receiving compensation? One deposit run is required daily by company policy, but the man
you should be getting a mileage comp. I own my own company and I pay my employee...
Can i sue my employer for breach of Contract?
i would suggest you get professional advice
from what you have put here yo...
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