Source: reason.com 8/7/24 In a new book, Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch describes the “human toll” of proliferating criminal penalties. “Criminal laws have grown so exuberantly and come to cover so much previously innocent conduct that almost anyone can be arrested for something,” Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch observed in 2019. Gorsuch elaborates on that theme in a new book, showing how the proliferation of criminal penalties has given prosecutors enormous power to ruin people’s lives, resulting in the nearly complete replacement of jury trials with plea bargains. “Some scholars peg…
Read MoreTag: Excessive Sentencing
Efforts to release prisoners from long sentences draw new interest, including in Oklahoma
Source: duncanbanner.com 7/31/24 Lawmakers across the country have considered legislation this year that would allow courts or parole boards to reevaluate a person’s long prison sentence and decide whether they can be safely released into society. The bills, known as “second look” legislation, often focus on older populations, people sentenced as minors, or those whose crimes might have had a mitigating factor such as self-defense against domestic violence. As America’s prison population both ages and increases, the “second look” movement has gained interest as a way to reduce overcrowding and…
Read MoreTX: Repeat offender in Burnet county gets 99 years for not registering as a sex offender
Source: cbsaustin.com 12/20/23 Earlier this month, a Burnet County jury found 63-year-old Aubrey ____ guilty after he failed to register as a sex offender. Due to prior felony convictions, he was sentenced to 99 years in prison. On Feb. 13, officers responded to ____ ’s residence in Burnet to investigate an allegation. During the investigation, they arrested him. Rather than reporting to his sex offender registration officer, ____ fled to St. Louis, Missouri. He was using an alias and did not inform authorities of his status as a sex offender.…
Read MoreFL: Death penalty in child rapes among new Florida laws soon to take effect
Source: orlandosentinel.com 9/26/23 A new law that could lead to imposing the death penalty on people who rape children under age 12 will take effect Sunday, along with other laws passed during the 2023 legislative session. Other measures taking effect could lead to putting local governments on the hook for attorney fees when ordinances are deemed “arbitrary or unreasonable;” increase penalties on fans who interfere with sporting events; and require teens to at least have learner’s permits to drive golf carts on public roads. The laws passed during the legislative…
Read MoreOK: Henryetta families advocate for life sentences for child sex crimes
Source: news9.com 9/11/23 The families of two of the girls murdered in Henryetta want stricter laws for convicted sex offenders. The families are calling it “Knight’s Law”- after Henryetta’s school mascot. There are 13 laws they would like to see passed as part of their “Knight’s Law” push. The main one is anyone convicted of a sex crime against a child would be sentenced to life in prison without parole. … If passed, these laws would mean more jail time for anyone convicted of sex crimes against children, notify people…
Read MoreTX: Sex offender in Fort Bend County gets 60-year sentence for refusing to register
Source: cw39.com 7/14/23 RICHMOND, Texas (KIAH) — In June of 2020, now-53-year-old Brian _____ told police in Missouri City that the laws of Texas didn’t apply to him. Officers had just discovered that the convicted sex offender had been living in that community for years without registering as is required by state law. Shortly after, _____ fled the state, but U.S. Marshals eventually tracked him down in Arizona. On June 30, A Fort Bend County jury convicted him on two charges of Failure to Comply with Sex Offender Registration Requirements…
Read MoreFL: Florida Capital-Punishment Bill Regarding Sexual Offenses Sparks Controversy
Source: discover.hubpages.com 6/4/23 1. Introduction When I moved from New York to California so many years ago, what really bewildered me was when I discovered that under their statutory-age-of-consent laws at the time, a 14-year-old boy could have been charged with statutory rape for having consensual relations with a 17-year-old girl. I had never heard of such a thing. I had thought that in those kinds of criminal cases, the perpetrator was always supposed to be older than the victim. In a situation wherein a boy that young had been…
Read MoreFL: Homeless, delusional defendant sent to prison for life shown mercy by Miami judge
Source: aol.com 6/12/23 Jared Stephens, a homeless and mentally ill man who committed an inexplicable crime, shouldn’t spend the rest of his life in prison, a judge ruled Monday. Miami-Dade Circuit Judge William Altfield undid a sentence handed down five years earlier by a different judge, who sentenced Stephens to a minimum of 150 years — with 120 days in jail for good measure. Stephens’ delusional behavior, before and during his trial, had stymied his defense. Read the full article
Read MoreFL: Gov. DeSantis signs law that would punish child sex offenders with death penalty
Source: cbs12.com 5/2/23 WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (CBS12) — Gov. Ron DeSantis signed three bills into law that would continue his tough-on-crime narrative for Florida. One of those bills would punish some child sex offenders with the death penalty. However, it could face some legal challenges – like similar cases before it. Read the full article
Read MoreCA: Prosecutor Labels Homeless Registrant Accused as ‘Nuisance’ in Attempt to Get Him Extraordinary Jail Sentence – Judge Disagrees
Source: davisvanguard.org 4/25/23 WOODLAND, CA – Deputy District Attorney Preston Schaub accused a homeless man of being a “nuisance” and “burden to the community” last Friday during a sentencing hearing here in Yolo County Superior Court in an apparent attempt to convince Judge Tom Dyer to issue an abnormally severe sentence. Judge Dyer didn’t bite, sentencing the man to probation as long as he abides by court’s conditions. The accused had pleaded no contest to misdemeanor possession of a controlled substance earlier this month, and DDA Schaub tried to use…
Read More‘How long is long enough?’: Independent task force challenges length of prison sentences in America
Source: yahoo.com 2/21/23 Prisoners with long-term sentences need more opportunities to have their sentences reviewed. Lawmakers and state agencies need to identify and address racial disparities in sentencing. And the amount of a drug involved in a crime should be decoupled from the length of an offender’s sentence. Those are some of the recommendations from the authors of a yearlong study of the nation’s use of lengthy prison sentences published Tuesday. The independent task force, co-chaired by former U.S. Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates, who was appointed by President Barack Obama, and former Republican South Carolina…
Read MoreFL: Bills filed in both the Florida Senate and House that would allow the death penalty for child rapist
Source: firstcoastnews.com 3/1/23 The bill would allow people convicted of raping children to be executed on a non-unanimous jury vote of 8-4. JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Accused child rapists face the death penalty under a bill filed Wednesday by two Republican lawmakers. Twin proposals were introduced in the Florida House and Senate to allow people who rape children under the age of 12 to be executed. The House version was filed by new Jacksonville Rep. Jessica Baker, a prosecutor in the 7th Circuit. The Senate version was filed by Sen. Johnathan…
Read MoreFL: He was homeless and mentally ill. A judge sentenced him to 150 years for CP. Is that justice?
Source: miamiherald.com 2/27/23 There’s no argument: Jared Stephens committed a crime, and he deserved some form of punishment. We’re not suggesting that child pornography isn’t an evil act. Possessing it is a crime for good reason. But the fight now in Florida courts to reduce the 150-year prison term Stephens received is about more than laws and sentences. It’s about how how our judicial system treats defendants with serious mental illness. The question is whether the 32-year-old man diagnosed with schizophrenia — who talked in court about shutting off electricity…
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