Category: Blog

United States vs Venable Provides Answer Since the passage of the FIRST STEP Act in 2018 there have been hundreds of questions about whether inmates serving a term of Supervised Release would be able to seek relief as part of the retroactive application of the Fair Sentencing Act. In United States vs. Venable, No. 19-6280, […]

In Rigdill, a federal criminal appeal, the 9th Circuit held that a Fourteen-Level Enhancement required clear and convincing evidence from the government.

Presidential clemency power takes a different tone in the current administration, with pardons, clemencies, and commutations.

A New Case Before the Supreme Court:  Shular v. United States When legal conversation touches on the 'categorical approach', there is one federal criminal sentencing statute that has garnered more attention from the United States Supreme Court this term than any other. In fact, the ACCA statute is ‘the gift that keeps on giving’ because […]

"How Long is the Federal Criminal Appeals Process?" This is a question our office gets all the time, and it would be great if we could give a clear-cut answer; however, the short and sweet truth of the federal criminal appeals process is that it takes as long as it takes. Sometimes it can take […]

The BOP recently released a 102-page book to describe the development and implementation of its new PATTERN risk and needs assessment tool.

The Supreme Court judgement under Rehaif said that a felon must have knowledge that they are unable to be in possession of a firearm. Why is the Rehaif Case Important? The Rehaif case may be significant because of its consequences.  It is possible that there will now be a flood of litigation from defendants who will […]

The Elderly Offender Home Detention Program is a program by which an “Eligible Elderly Offender” or an “Eligible Terminally Ill Offender” can go home for the rest of their sentence.

A main misconception is that a federal criminal appeal is an opportunity to re-address or re-open the facts that were presented at trial.

According to the Bureau of Justice, from 1999 to 2016, the number of inmates in state and federal prisons who were 55 years or older increased 280 percent!