A single federal drug offense involving both powder and crack cocaine is eligible for a reduced sentence under the First Step Act`s retroactive application of the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 (FSA), even if the offense included a non-qualifying drug, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit held on August 4, 2021. The […]
A Wisconsin court has delayed a defendant`s criminal appeal for over four years in a seeming attempt to prevent his federal lawsuit to move forward against the cops for use of excessive force during the search of his house, and for falsifying court documents relating to that search. The federal judge said his lawsuit had […]
Being violently assaulted in prison is simply not `part of the penalty that criminal offenders pay for their offenses against society.’ Farmer v. Brennan, 511 U.S. 825, 834 (1994) (quoting Rhodes v. Chapman, 452 U.S. 337, 347 (1981)) Contents Introduction Background and conditions Predators and prey in prison Mechanisms for obtaining help Adverse changes during […]
Experts agree it’s the fear of being caught that deters crime, and not the severity and length of the punishment. Yet, judges continue to defy logic by imposing sentences on the faulty premise that this is what works to deter crime. Take the case of United States v. Kimble, 2020 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 237529 (S.D. […]
Unsurprisingly, lawmakers in Alabama have decided to use money the federal government gave the state to recover from COVID-19 to build more prisons. That’s right: One of the states hit hardest by the pandemic is taking money from its struggling residents so it can lock up even more of them. This is the same state […]
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