Sentencing Guidelines Amendment Would Preclude Acquitted Conduct From Being Used At Sentencing

• Jurisdiction: United States,Federal
• Author: Mr Scott Resnik, Michael Rosensaft and Nicholas Liotta
• Law Firm: Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP
• Published date: 31 January 2023

In what may come as a surprise to many, lawmakers across the political spectrum actually agree on at least one thing: the practice of sentencing federal defendants based on acquitted conduct has gone on long enough. Last week, a bi-partisan panel of the U.S. Sentencing Commission voted to issue a proposed amendment that would prohibit judges from considering a defendant's acquitted conduct when calculating their guidelines range and ultimate sentence.

Over two decades have passed since the Supreme Court's decision in United States v. Watts, 519 U.S. 148 (1997), where the Court permitted judges to consider acquitted charges...