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SPECIFIC GUIDELINE / STATUTORY SENTENCING ISSUES

 

The resources below are designed to further an understanding of sentencing under particular statutory provisions, sentencing guidelines, or claims for relief.  Many of the links provide ideas for how to argue against the application of a particular statutory provision or guideline in a given case. For resources that critically examine the history and basis of the most frequently encountered sentencing guidelines see the Deconstruction section on this page.


  • Child Pornography
    • Briefs Challenging Application of Mandatory Minimum for Receipt of Child Pornography
      This opening brief and reply brief (filed in a pending case in the Third Circuit) argue that (1) where five counts of receiving or transporting child pornography were all the "same offense," for multiplicity and double jeopardy purposes, as a single count of possession of those very same files, the judgment must be vacated and the case remanded for an exercise of discretion whether to vacate the possession count (with no mandatory minimum), or the five other counts (each with a five-year mandatory minimum); and (2) the mandatory minimums were not mandatory because 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) is the controlling sentencing provision.

 

  • Fast-Track Disparity
    • Fast-Track Policies
      This document was compiled by the Federal Public Defender's Office for the District of Arizona. The compilation contains written fast-track policies from many districts nationwide. It is bookmarked alphabetically by district.

    • Fast-Track Plea Agreements
      This document was compiled by the Federal Public Defender's Office for the District of Arizona. The compilation contains plea agreement samples, various forms and waivers from many districts nationwide (defendant names redacted). It is bookmarked alphabetically by district.

    • 1/31/12 DOJ Fast-Track Authorization Memo
      (extending fast-track programs to all districts in illegal re-entry prosecutions)

    • The Truth About Fast Track

    • 12/28/09 DOJ Fast-Track Authorization Memo

    • 5/29/09 DOJ Fast-Track Authorization Memo

    • 2/1/08 DOJ Fast-Track Authorization Memo

    • Conditional Waiver of Rights in Districts Without Fast-Track 
      Practitioners in districts without fast-track may consider using a conditional waiver of rights to support a disparate sentencing argument. The conditional waiver helps prove the client is similarly situated to defendants in fast-track districts in that he is willing to waive the same rights as do fast-track defendants, in exchange for a comparably low sentence.

    • Fast-Track Articles and Primary Source Materials
      These articles and primary source materials, published in the Fast Track issue of the Federal Sentencing Reporter (Vol. 21, No. 5, June 2009), are useful in arguing that judges have discretion to mitigate fast-track disparities. The above link provides free excerpts of and citations to the articles and source materials; use the citations to locate complete versions through LEXIS.

    • United States v. Ramirez, et al. - Petition for Rehearing & Rehearing En Banc 
      (arguing that the Seventh Circuit's panel decision (1) creates a circuit split and deviates from the Seventh Circuit's own precedent by requiring defendants seeking fast-track disparity reductions to waive certain rights without receiving any benefit in exchange; and (2) creates an additional circuit split by requiring defendants to provide extremely detailed information about all fast-track programs)

  • Firearms