6/17/10 - Court says Booker doesn't apply in Dillon v. United States
On June 17, the U.S. Supreme Court handed down its decision in Dillon v. United States. In a 7-1 opinion written by Justice Sonia Sotomayor (Justice Samuel Alito did not participate in the case and Justice John Paul Stevens dissented), the Court held that United States v. Booker, which made the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines advisory, does not apply when a person seeks a reduced sentence based on a guideline amendment that has been made retroactive by the U.S. Sentencing Commission. Read more
6/7/10 - Supreme Court rules that BOP's calculation of good time credit is correct
FAMM regrets to announce that the U.S. Supreme Court sided with the government in the case of Barber v. Thomas, 560 U.S. ___ (2010), ruling that the Bureau of Prisons has been correctly calculating good time for federal prisoners at 47 days for each year of time actually served, not 54 days for each year of the sentence imposed, as FAMM argued in its amicus brief. Read more
5/24/10 - Supreme Court rules machine gun 30-year mandatory minimum cannot apply without jury say so
In a victory for defendants and advocates, the U.S. Supreme Court today ruled in United States v. O'Brien, et al. (No 08-1569) that a punitive 30-year mandatory minimum sentence for offenses involving a machine gun may not be imposed unless the defendant is indicted and found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt by a jury of using a machine gun. Read more
5/7/2010 - When does a law mean what it says?
When does a law mean what it says? Funny question, but one that is at the heart of a pair of cases FAMM is participating in at the U.S. Supreme Court: Abbott v. United States and Gould v. United States. The gun statute, 18 U.S.C. sec. 924(c), adds a mandatory minimum sentence of at least five years in addition to any other sentence imposed in a case when a person is convicted of using or possessing a firearm in connection with a violent or drug offense. Read more
3/3/2010 - A rude poke is not a violent felony, says Supreme Court
A decisive majority of the Supreme Court agreed yesterday that mere touching could not be considered use of physical force against another person. The case, Johnson v. United States, No. 08-6925, analyzed the Armed Career Criminal Statute (ACCA) that imposes a 15-year mandatory minimum sentence when a felon in possession of a firearm has three or more prior violent felonies -- crimes that involve the use of force -- on his record. Read more
2/23/2010 - FAMM Feeling Optimistic Following Oral Argument in Gun Mandatory Minimum Case
How did we feel following the argument? In a word: optimistic. The justices were – yet again – grappling with the dreadful 18 U.S.C. §924(c), the poorly drafted and complicated gun statute. Read more
2/11/2010 - Federal statute once again under Supreme Court scrutiny
The federal gun statute, 18 U.S.C. sec. 924(c), has received a great deal of attention at the highest court in the last two court sessions. This session is no different and because the challenged statute includes many mandatory minimums, including some of the harshest in the federal criminal code, of course FAMM is involved. In United States v. O’Brien and Burgess (No. 08-1569), the Court is expected to resolve whether the provision in sec. 924(c) that imposes a 30-year mandatory minimum for machinegun use describes a separate criminal offense or merely a sentencing factor. Read more
2/5/2010 - FAMM Tells Supreme Court How to Fix Good Time Mess
For many years, prisoners, FAMM and others have asked the federal courts to strike down the way the federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) awards good time credit to federal prisoners. Now a new Supreme Court case (Barber v. Thomas, No. 09-5201) challenges the way the BOP calculates good time credit. Read more about the case and FAMM's amicus brief. Read more
8/1/09 - New good time challenge seeking Supreme Court consideration
In Tablada v. Thomas (No. 08-1134), the petitioner asks the Supreme Court of the United States to review how the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) awards good conduct credit. FAMM is among several organizations that filed an amicus brief in the case. Read more
5/1/09 - Brief encourages "rule of lenity" in Dean v. United States
FAMM, the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and the National Association of Federal Defenders joined in an amicus (friend of the court) brief, explaining why the Supreme Court should rule on behalf of Christopher Michael Dean and reduce his mandatory 10-year sentence to seven years. It was undisputed that Mr. Dean, while robbing a bank, accidently fired the gun he was brandishing. The issue presented to the Supreme Court was whether the law requires the defendant to have intended to shoot the gun or if a mere accident is enough to trigger the 10-year mandatory minimum for firing the weapon. Read more
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