Friday, February 7, 2025 North Carolina state judge rules that "race was a significant factor" in capital jury selection. As reported in this AP article, "racial bias tainted the decision to strike Black people from the jury pool and to impose the death penalty in the 2009 trial of a Black man in North Carolina, a judge ruled on Friday, part of what he called “glaring” patterns of bias in ...

Saturday, February 1, 2025 "Truth and Deception in Criminal Sentencing" The title of this post is the title of this new article authored by Paul Robinson and Hugh Rennie now available via SSRN. Here is its abstract: News accounts routinely report the sentences imposed by judges and there are commonly debates over their propriety that can …

5 days ago · Thursday, February 6, 2025 Alabama completes its fourth execution by means of nitrogen gas. As reported in this local article, "Alabama Death Row inmate was executed tonight for the 1991 slaying of a woman in her Birmingham apartment, who he admitted killing after he got tired of hearing her beg for her life." Here is more: Demetrius Terrence Frazier was executed at the William C. Holman ...

4 days ago · In the body of your email, please indicate if you are a professor, student, prosecutor, defense attorney, etc. so I can gain a sense of who is reading my blog.

Tuesday, December 17, 2024 "The Impact of United States v.Erlinger on State Recidivist Sentencing Laws". The title of this post is the title of this notable new essay authored by Chad Flanders just posted to SSRN. Here is its abstract: In Erlinger v.United States, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that finding that an offender had committed two felonies "on separate occasions" under the Armed ...

Nov 20, 2024 · Sentencing Law and Policy blog provides Information and Commentary about Guidelines and Capital Sentencing

September 11, 2024 in Federal Sentencing Guidelines, Procedure and Proof at Sentencing, White-collar sentencing, Who Sentences | Permalink | Comments (4). Monday, September 09, 2024 US Sentencing Commission releases FY 2024 third quarter sentencing data. The US Sentencing Commission last week released on its website its latest quarterly data report, this one labelled "3rd Quarter Release ...

Mar 22, 2024 · « Highlighting how new resentencing laws could help law students consider becoming prosecutors | Main | Intriguing discussion of judges' experiences with death penalty case ». March 22, 2024 "The Delinquent Guidelines: Calling on the U.S. Sentencing Commission to Stop Counting Defendants’ Prior Offenses Committed Before Age 18"

Jan 28, 2025 · This Reason piece about the Post's findings helpfully summarizes some of the key sentencing stories:. The investigation revealed a staggering lack of accountability for officers who sexually abuse minors — finding not only that convicted officers often received paltry sentences, but that police departments sometimes rehired officers with child sex abuse convictions.

Tuesday, December 24, 2024 Rounding up some reactions to Prez Biden's decision to commute 37 federal death sentences. Prez Biden's decision to commute the sentences of 37 of the 40 convicted murderers on federal death row to life without of parole is remarkable for many reasons.