CRIMINAL LEGAL NEWS Useful Information For Those Entering Federal Prison FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
| U.S. Supreme Court Issues Ruling Affecting Federal Criminal Sentencing |
| RITA v. UNITED STATES (No. 06-5754) 177 Fed. Appx. 357, affirmed. JUNE 21, 2007 |
| In an 8 to 1 decision, the US Supreme Court handed down a ruling in Rita v. United States, where the Court held that a prison sentence falling within the federal sentencing guidelines may be presumed to be a reasonable sentence on appeal, but the presumption of reasonableness is not binding. Victor Rita was convicted of obstructing justice and making false statements in a federal grand jury investigation. Rita's lawyer argued that because of Rita's poor health he should be sentenced to less jailtime than the 33 to 41 months recommended by the sentencing guidelines. |
| The trial judge refused to take Victor's individual health into account and imposed a 33-month sentence. The decision was later upheld by the US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, and the Supreme Court affirmed the Fourth Circuit Thursday. After the Supreme Court’s decision in United States v. Booker, a sentencing court is no longer bound to give a sentence within the range prescribed by the federal sentencing guidelines. The Fourth Circuit noted that Rita's sentence was within the statutory range, and therefore presumptively reasonable. It also noted that the district court considered the factors in 3553(a), even if it did not explicitly analyze the factors. |
| FEDTIME 101 PRISON CONSULTING "Federal Prison Consultants & Habeas Corpus Litigators" RDAP FEDERAL SENTENCE REDUCTION EXPERTS Nationwide: 888-558-2151 |
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