Report to Congress: Mandatory Minimum Penalties in the Federal Criminal Justice System, October 2011

摘要

This report assesses the impact of mandatory minimum penalties on federal sentencing, particularly in light of the Supreme Courts decision in Booker v. United States, which rendered the federal sentencing guidelines advisory. The United States Sentencing Commission (hereinafter the Commission) prepared this report pursuant to a congressional directive contained in section 4713 of the Matthew Shepherd and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2009, Pub L. No. 11184, and the Commissions general authority under 28 U.S.C. SS 994995, as well as its specific authority under 28 U.S.C. S 995(a)(20) to make recommendations to Congress concerning modification or enactment of statutes relating to sentencing, penal, and correctional matters that the Commission finds to be necessary and advisable to carry out an effective, humane, and rational sentencing policy.