The title of this post is the title of this article authored by Rhys Hester in the June 2025 issue of the Criminal Law Forum. (As noted in this prior post, this journal issue is devoted to celebrating the
Douglas A. Berman
Sentencing Law and Policy is a legal blog authored by Douglas A. Berman, focusing on issues related to criminal sentencing, death penalty cases, prosecutorial discretion, and constitutional law. The blog provides analysis and commentary on recent developments in sentencing law, including Supreme Court decisions, state-level death penalty cases, and broader topics such as plea bargaining and mass incarceration. It serves as a resource for legal scholars, practitioners, and those interested in the intersection of criminal justice policy and constitutional rights. The content often addresses complex legal theories and practical implications of sentencing practices in the United States.
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US Sentencing Commission releases over 500 pages of public comment on 2025-26 proposed priorities
As reported in this post, the US Sentencing Commission released in early June this Federal Register notice of its possible policy priorities for the guideline amendment cycle ending May 1, 2026, which came with a request for public comment…
More details on the BOP’s new First Step Act Task Force and its challenges
I noted in this post last week that the new Direcotr of the federal Bureau of Prisons has created a new First Step Act Task Force. This new Forbes article by Walter Palvo, headlined “Bureau Of Prisons Task Force Taking…
Bureau of Justice Statistics releases “Capital Punishment, 2023 – Statistical Tables”
This morning the Justice Department’s Bureau of Justice Statistics released this latest report on national data on the administration of the death penalty in the United States through the end of 2023. As I have noted in prior posts, though…
New CCJ report details “Crime Trends in U.S. Cities: Mid-Year 2025 Update”
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 2025 Update.” Here are some of the encouraging details from the the report’s “Key…
“How Much Do Mandatory Minimums Matter?”
The title of this post is the title of this new paper authored by Spencer Cooper now available via SSRN. Here is its abstract:I estimate the causal effect of mandatory minimum (MM) eligibility on federal drug sentencing using a regression…
“Is the Defendant Mad or Bad? The Association Between Mental Health, Race and Sex in Sentencing in Federal Courts”
The title of this post is the title of this new article published in the American Journal of Criminal Justice and authored by Tracy Sohoni, Sylwia Piatkowska and Briana Paige. Here is its abstract:Although US courts regularly sentence individuals with…
An encouraging midyear crime assessment and accounts for the great crime decline
Anyone keeping an eye on crime trends will want to be sure to read these two new Substack posts:From Jeff-alytics, “Assessing Crime At Midyear: The trends aren’t set in stone but they are clearly established.” Excerpts:Crime almost certainly…
New BJS report on “Probation and Parole in the United States, 2023”
The Justcie Department’s Bureau of Justice Statistics today released this new data report titled “Probation and Parole in the United States, 2023.” Here is how this report begins and a few “highlights” noted onits first page:An estimated 3,772,000 adults were…
Lots of recent Law360 pieces for summer reading
I am not sure I would describe criminal justice articles from Law360 as “beach reading,” but I am sure that I have noticed a number of notable pieces on that site should not be overlooked amid summer fun. So here…