Fourth Circuit Vacates Denial of First Step Act Relief Where Record Unclear Whether District Court Considered All Nonfrivolous Arguments Raised by Defendant by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit vacated the denial of a motion seeking a sentence reduction under § 404(b) of …

Dangerous ‘Dead Crimes’ That Are Still on the Books by Brooke Kaufman by Brooke Kaufman Criminologists have a term for offenses in the criminal code that are no longer considered criminal — “dead crimes.” In the United States, dead crimes are clogging up the criminal code, threatening to undermine the …

Tenth Circuit Joins Other Circuits, Holds § 1B1.13 Does Not Apply to Compassionate Release Motions Filed by Prisoners by Dale Chappell by Dale Chappell Joining several other circuits, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit held that a district court has the discretion to determine whether “extraordinary and …

Fifth Circuit: U.S.S.G. § 1B1.13 Policy Statement Not Applicable to Prisoner’s Motion for Compassionate Release by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit held that the Sentencing Commission’s policy statement in U.S. Sentencing Guidelines § 1B1.13 is inapplicable to a prisoner’s own motion …