In a September 12th article from the National Review, entitled On Criminal Justice, Sessions Is Returning DOJ to the Failed Policies of the Past, two former U.S. Attorneys (Joyce Vance, former U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Alabama, and Carter Stewart, former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio) contend that Attorney General Jeff Sessions' charging and sentencing policies will not fix the complex problems that plague our justice system. Those polices, established on May 10, 2017, direct prosecutors to “charge and pursue the most serious, readily provable offense” and then “disclose to the sentencing court all facts that impact the sentencing guidelines or mandatory minimum sentences” and “seek a reasonable sentence under the factors in 18 U.S.C. § 3553.” Vance and Carter argue that “this one-size-fits-all policy” does not work and “will roll back previously instituted changes that were beginning to reduce America’s prison population, the justice system’s costs, and crime.”
For a copy of the article, click here. For a copy of the Attorney General's May 10th charging policy, click here. For charging and sentencing policies from previous Attorneys General, click here.