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Sentencing Posts
It is Time for a “Second Look” at Legislative Efforts to Combat Mass Incarceration & Recidivism
May 19, 2025
It is Time for a “Second Look” at Legislative Efforts to Combat Mass Incarceration & Recidivism
Government efficiency and spending is a hot topic of controversy in the United States. But even in the context of heated “DOGE” fights, there are proven examples of government efficiency and reduced spending that are clearly working—the passing of measures like the Second Chance and First Step Acts in an effort for mass incarceration and…
A Luigi Mangione Death Penalty Trial
Apr 15, 2025
A Luigi Mangione Death Penalty Trial
The Attorney General’s recent announcement that DOJ will seek the death penalty against Luigi Mangione raises a host of interesting legal and philosophical issues, and it almost certainly reflects a dramatic about-face from the Biden administration’s approach towards federal prosecutions for death-eligible offenses. Aside from having personally prosecuted three death penalty trials while I was…
DOJ Memo Sneaks In Seismic Changes
Jan 31, 2025
DOJ Memo Sneaks In Seismic Changes
Amidst the tidal wave of Executive Orders, presidential appointments, and policy announcements, it is easy to treat last week’s Interim Policy Memo from the Acting Deputy Attorney General[1] as just another ripple of nominal change that occurs when democrats replace republicans or republicans replace democrats. And, indeed, although there are portions of it that reflect…
How Thick is the Blanket? – Preemptive Pardons as a Presidential Power
Dec 6, 2024
How Thick is the Blanket? – Preemptive Pardons as a Presidential Power
As the presiding judge scolded Hunter Biden’s attorneys this week, “The Constitution provides the President with broad authority to grant reprieves and pardons for offenses against the United States, U.S. Const. art. II, § 2, cl. 1, but nowhere does the Constitution give the President the authority to rewrite history.”[1] But what exactly is that…
The Challenging Terrain of White-Collar Sentencing
Jun 3, 2024
The Challenging Terrain of White-Collar Sentencing
Federal judges are required to balance a number of factors whenever imposing sentence, including specifically enumerated areas that largely stem from the broader philosophical categories of General Deterrence, Specific Deterrence, Retribution/Punishment, Restitution and Victim Impact, and Rehabilitation. In determining the presumptively reasonable range of potential sentences, federal practitioners consult their always-handy U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, which…
Punishing the Parent – Should the Parents of a School Shooter Be Criminally Liable for their Parental Failures?
Apr 16, 2024
Punishing the Parent – Should the Parents of a School Shooter Be Criminally Liable for their Parental Failures?
Can being a bad parent make you a criminal? A jury in Michigan recently answered yes in the case of Jennifer and James Crumbley – the parents of high school mass shooter, Ethan Crumbley. Although neither Mr. nor Mrs. Crumbley fired a single shot during the school shooting that killed four students (and injured six…
Was FTX Collapse as Bad as Enron? In sentencing SBF, Judge Kaplan Says Yes
Apr 1, 2024
Was FTX Collapse as Bad as Enron? In sentencing SBF, Judge Kaplan Says Yes
On Thursday, March 28, 2024, 32-year old Sam Bankman-Fried was sentenced to 25 years in prison for his role in one of the largest financial frauds in U.S. history—a fraud perpetrated through two cryptocurrency entities he founded—FTX and Alameda Research. In late-2023, a jury convicted him on various conspiracy and substantive counts for wire fraud…
Reading the Plea Leaves
Oct 25, 2023
Reading the Plea Leaves
Are guilty pleas in Fulton County confirming the righteousness of Fani Willis’ RICO prosecution or do they reflect an inherent frailty of the case, even in a venue where jurors largely can be expected to instinctively support a prosecution of high-profile Republicans? A close look at the recent plea agreements suggests that prosecutorial victory laps…
When Acquitted Conduct Becomes Untouchable
Jul 27, 2023
When Acquitted Conduct Becomes Untouchable
Alphonse Gabriel Capone was never prosecuted for murder, so there was never a jury determining whether Al was responsible for the infamous St. Valentine’s Day Massacre in which seven gang rivals were executed by Capone’s underlings. Instead, “Scarface” Capone was prosecuted and convicted for felony tax evasion offenses, for which he received 11 years in…
Singing the Varsity Blues – Convictions Vacated For Two Defendants in the College Admission Scandal.
Jun 19, 2023
Singing the Varsity Blues – Convictions Vacated For Two Defendants in the College Admission Scandal.
On May 10, 2023, the First Circuit Court of Appeals provided welcoming news to two of the defendants in “Varsity Blues” the college admissions scandal – their convictions were being vacated. Former Wynn Resorts executive Gamal Abdelaziz and private equity executive John Wilson were just two of dozens of high-profile defendants charged with various white-collar…
