Sentencing Law and Policy: House approves creation of National Criminal Justice Commission typepad.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from typepad.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
eye on the news
Death and De-Prosecution in Philadelphia The city’s district attorney won’t fight crime even as the body count rises.
Public safety
Politics and law
In 2017, Philadelphians elected “progressive prosecutor” Larry Krasner as district attorney. Since taking office, Krasner has pursued a policy of de-prosecution the decision not to prosecute certain crimes regardless of whether they actually took place as homicides have spiked. While Philadelphia experienced de-prosecution and rising homicides leading up to Krasner’s election, both trends have accelerated dramatically under his leadership. That he now faces a serious primary challenge in his quest for reelection should come as no surprise.
Bank robber’s 70-year prison term unfair, N.J. high court says in calling for change
Updated 11:07 AM;
The New Jersey Supreme Court ordered a Monmouth County bank robber re-sentenced Tuesday, saying the two separate prison terms that would keep him behind bars until he is 102 years old are unfair.
The court found the judges who sentenced Edgar Torres to a combined 70 years behind bars did not give explicit explanation for running the sentences consecutively. They sent it back, “for meaningful review and re-sentencing utilizing the principles contained in this opinion.”
The unanimous decision, though, went beyond Torres’ predicament. The court said they took the case because the sentences’ length “concerned” them, and they said the state legislature and an existing sentencing commission needs to address the issue of consecutive sentences.
Getting antsy for US Sentencing Commission appointments after another slate of impressive judicial nominees from Prez Biden
As detailed in this official press release, titled President Biden Announces Third Slate of Judicial Nominees, Prez Biden announced a slate of six new judicial appointments ( three new Court of Appeals nominees and three new District Court nominees. As detailed in this Reuters article, headlined Biden latest judicial picks stress public defender work, the new Prez is fulfilling calls to add professional diversity to a federal judiciary now dominated by prosecutors and BigLaw lawyers (see prior posts here and here). Here are some details: