Category: Blog

In a recent legal development, the Fifth Circuit vacated the sentence of an individual, Martinez-Hernandez, who was convicted of transporting undocumented immigrants into the United States. The case centered around two key issues: an enhancement for obstruction of justice and a denial of a reduction for acceptance of responsibility. Willful Obstruction of Justice Martinez-Hernandez received […]

In a recent legal case regarding search and seizure, the Eleventh Circuit made a significant decision in the matter of United States v. Meeks. The case involves a situation where a police officer's mistake of fact led to a traffic stop, raising questions about the protection offered by the Fourth Amendment. Case History Here's what […]

The Prison Policy Initiative (PPI), a Massachusetts-based non-profit organization, is urging the Washington state government to reconsider its prison mail scanning policies. These policies, in place since October 2021, involve the digitization of personal mail, which is then viewed by inmates via kiosk or tablet. While the Department of Corrections says the policy is for […]

KALB repots that the Federal Correctional Complex in Pollock continues to grapple with significant understaffing issues a year after initial reports highlighted the problem. The complex, which houses 2,700 inmates across three facilities, currently employs 283 correctional officers, resulting in an overreliance on overtime shifts. “At this point, there’s no end in sight,” said Thomas […]

Lanier was initially convicted of three counts of conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1951(a), and three counts of brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 924(c). He was sentenced to 946 months imprisonment by the district court. However, following […]

The United States Sentencing Commission has published several studies and other research about their sentencing in the year 2023. Here is a compilation of those studies. Quick Facts on Career Offenders, FY 2021 95.7% of career offenders were men. 58.2% of career offenders were Black, 25.5% were White, 13.8% were Hispanic, and 2.5% were Other […]

This is the Federal Reading List, a group of odds and ends that we want to at least let the public know about. The best way to reform prisons is to reduce their populations (Washington Post Opinion) A former incarcerated person offers a solution. Going forward, the Bureau of Prisons should adopt policies to align […]

Bureau of Prisons Produces Statement about Pell Grants for Prisoners (BOP) - In 1994, Congress removed Pell Grant eligibility for incarcerated people. For 22 years, incarcerated people who wanted a college education had to pay for classes with personal funds or Unicor scholarships. In 2015, the Second Chance Pell experiment was established to provide Pell […]

Aybar-Peguero (referred to as Aybar) pled guilty to drug trafficking and concealment money laundering. The claim was that narcotics were being sold out of a convenience store. While allocating to the concealment money laundering case, Aybar said that he knew that what he was doing was illegal. But the following exchange happened: THE COURT: I'm […]

Many of you have been waiting to hear if McClinton v. United States would be heard by the Supreme Court. On June 30, 2023 we learned that the Supreme Court declined to grant certiorari. The White House’s website indicates the following about what certiorari is: In almost all instances, the Supreme Court does not hear […]