Podcast
Manifest Injustice: Hunter, Hemani, & Buh-Bye Blanche
🎙️ NEW EPISODE: The Supreme Court just moved the goalposts on federal sentencing — and the next AG fight starts now. If federal defendants could trust that pleading guilty meant a predictable outcome, then the system would actually function the way it’s sold to them. ⚖️ But SCOTUS just complicated that bargain. In Hunter, it…
New Compassionate Release Cases: Is the Door to Freedom Shrinking?
With the First Step Act of 2018 came the great hope of expanded grounds and use of “Compassionate Release.” Judges were offered the promise of wider discretion to give deserving clients a second look at sentencing. But, the Supreme Court just made compassionate release a whole lot harder to get, because in two back-to-back decisions…
“8647”: A New Low for Trump’s DOJ?
Negotiating Plea Agreements with Bite (Plea Agreements Pt. II)
The decision whether to enter into a plea agreement with the government/state is the most important choice a client will make. But too many clients enter into bad pleas – ones that promise little and give up a lot. A client shouldn’t have to settle for a plea that lacks real bite. Therefore, in Part…
Pleading Straight Up, No Chaser! (Plea Agreements, Part I)
Pleading guilty and waiving your right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt at trial is the most important choice a client will make in any case. But the decision to enter into a less than ideal plea agreement with the government is often influenced by fear, intimidation and false information. …
Atkins & The IQ Fallacy: Why IQ is Not a Reliable Measure of Culpability (with Dr. Ted Lidsky)
The Supreme Court determined that individuals with intellectual disabilities are less culpable and should not face capital punishment. Diminished Capacity is also applied in non-capital sentencings. In Hamm v. Smith, the Supreme Court is revisiting the 70 IQ cutoff because of new understandings about errors in measurement. But the bigger problem is IQ tests fail…
Life for Charles “Sonny” Burton: Act now to Save Sonny!
Charles “Sonny” Burton is a 75 year old man on Alabama’s death row. But he NEVER KILLED ANYONE. He was convicted under the archaic and unjust “felony murder” rule. His more culpable co-defendant got life. Six jurors regret their vote and want him to live. The victim’s daughter wants him to live. There has likely…
What’s Crackin’ at the Sentencing Commission – New Proposals that Could Change the Shape of Federal Sentencing
Congress intended most first-time non-violent offenders receive a non-custodial sentence. That’s how federal law worked before the guidelines. But, the guidelines did not fulfill that promise because the majority of those sentenced, end up having to serve time in the crumbling, overcrowded Bureau of Prisons. All that may be about to change, with revolutionary new…
Absolute Power (Pt.2): Clear Messaging in the Age of the Information Maelstrom
It’s easy to get overwhelmed by the onslaught of horrible headlines. Advocates need to fight, and words are our weapons. But the problem is, we are never taught how to cut through the noise and get to the heart of the argument. Part 1 (with Gary Restaino) defined the problem: Trump exerting total control over…
Absolute Power: Politization and Weaponization at the DOJ (With Gary Restaino)
Our founders wanted US attorneys to retain significant independence from the Department of Justice. If that happens, then experienced prosecutors have the credibility and moral fortitude to serve as a buffer between the unfettered power of the government and the people. But the Trump administration wants absolute power. That’s why we’re seeing a slew of…