US Sentencing Commission's expansion of compassionate release was invalid 'power grab,' court rules
April 23 (Reuters) - A divided federal appeals court ruled that a policy adopted in 2023 by the U.S. Sentencing Commission which allowed judges to deem changes in law as "extraordinary and compelling" reasons justifying granting inmates early release from prison, is invalid and amounts to a "heavy-handed and unseemly power grab."
A 2-1 panel of the Cincinnati-based 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday rejected bids, opens new tab by three inmates serving lengthy prison sentences to be released early based on the commission's new policy, citing the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark ruling in June curbing agencies' regulatory power.
Jumpstart your morning with the latest legal news delivered straight to your inbox from The Daily Docket newsletter. Sign up here.
That decision by the Supreme Court's 6-3 conservative majority scrapped a 40-year-old legal doctrine known as "Chevron deference" that had required courts to defer to federal agencies' interpretations of the laws they administer when those statutes are ambiguous.
U.S. Circuit Judge Alice Batchelder said under that decision, courts no longer need to defer to policy statements from the U.S. Sentencing Commission, a judicial-branch agency charged with crafting sentencing guidelines, just because a statute is ambiguous.
She said the commission's policy statement contradicted the text of the statute governing compassionate release and the 6th Circuit's earlier 2022 interpretation of it holding that a non-retroactive change in the law is not an "extraordinary and compelling reason' for a sentence reduction.
"We conclude that the Commission overstepped its authority and issued a policy statement that is plainly unreasonable under the statute and in conflict with the separation of powers," Batchelder wrote.
As a result, the court rejected arguments by inmates Jason Bricker, Ellis McHenry and Lois Orta that they were deserving of a compassionate release under the commission's policy as they were all serving sentences that were much longer than what they would have received today for the same offense.
Bricker, for example, was serving a 24-1/2 year sentence for a 2005 armed bank robbery, but if re-sentenced today would face a sentencing guidelines range of 70 to 87 months. Tuesday's decision reversed a judge's decision to reduce his sentence.
Batchelder's opinion was joined by U.S. Circuit Judge Chad Readler, a fellow appointee of a Republican president. U.S. Circuit Judge Jane Stranch, an appointee of Democratic President Barack Obama, dissented, saying the majority misconstrued the end of Chevron deference to reach its conclusion.
A spokesperson for the Sentencing Commission declined to comment. Lawyers for the inmates did not respond to requests for comment.
Two of the inmates had sought early release based on changes in law contained in the First Step Act, a bipartisan measure that Republican President Donald Trump signed into law in his first term in 2018 that reformed stricter sentencing laws.
The U.S. Sentencing Commission lost its quorum shortly after the law's enactment, preventing it for three years from updating sentencing guidelines to implement the law, including provisions to provide greater opportunities for inmates to seek compassionate release.
In the absence of any guidance from the panel, courts were left to decide for themselves what circumstances qualified as "extraordinary and compelling" that would warrant granting prisoners' requests for compassionate release, often leading to splits in the courts about how to interpret the law.
The Sentencing Commission finally, under Democratic former President Joe Biden, regained a quorum and on a 4-3 vote in April 2023 approved a policy statement which said that changes in law could be considered "extraordinary and compelling" if a defendant serving at least 10 years had received an "unusually long sentence.
The case is U.S. v. Bricker, 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, No. 24-3286.
For the United States: Andrew Noll of the U.S. Department of Justice
For Bricker: David O'Neil of Debevoise & Plimpton
For McHenry: Christian Grostic of the Office of the Federal Defender, Southern District of Ohio
For Orta: Alex Trieger of Kellogg, Hansen, Todd, Figel & Frederick
Read more:
US appeals court rejects sentencing panel's compassionate release policy
US Supreme Court curbs federal agency powers, overturning 1984 precedent
U.S. panel votes to expand compassionate release for prisoners
U.S. Justice Department tells panel changes in law don't warrant cutting sentences
Reporting by Nate Raymond in Boston
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab
Nate Raymond
Thomson Reuters
Nate Raymond reports on the federal judiciary and litigation. He can be reached at nate.raymond@thomsonreuters.com.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Herald Scotland
an hour ago
- The Herald Scotland
Labour MSP defies Scottish Secretary in call for wealth tax
A wealth tax is a form of taxation which is designed to collect money from an individual's total assets as opposed to specific levies on income or property. Proposed wealth taxes have included a levy on cumulative wealth - including everything from property, to investments, to art. The idea of the policy is that it could make the tax system fairer by directly targeting accumulated assets. The policy has recently emerged as a key dividing line in the parliamentary Labour Party in both Westminster and Holyrood. READ MORE: Last week, Scottish Secretary Ian Murray dismissed the idea of the UK Government implementing a wealth tax, saying that there was 'no silver bullet' to the country's economic woes. Speaking to the Comedian Matt Forde at the Edinburgh Fringe, Mr Murray said '[A wealth tax] doesn't work. The Laffer curve [an economic theory which explains the correlation between taxation and government revenue] is there for everyone to see. 'So, yes, you can bring in a wealth tax, because it might make you feel principally better. You might bring in £200 million but the cost of doing that would be huge because there is just flight, whether we like that or not.' Scottish Secretary Ian Murray last week publicly denounced the idea of a wealth tax (Image: PA)Contradicting Mr Murray, Ms Villalba said of the Laffer curve: 'this theory, though influential, is unfounded.' She went on to say that she believes that 'all financial wealth originates from human labour'. 'It would therefore take a mass exodus or nationwide risk to life for wealth creation in a country to cease.' 'We need only look at the hit private profit would have taken during the pandemic had the state not stepped in to shore it up to see the primacy of human labour evidenced. 'A significant proportion of wealth is in immobile assets like land, property and British-based businesses…This wealth cannot up sticks and leave with an individual. The resources remain in the country and are subject to taxation. 'We know we won't lose wealth creation as long as we have a fit and able population to do the work. 'In fact, the greatest risk to wealth is workforce shortages caused by a public health service on its knees, an undervalued public education system and a cost-of-living crisis deterring new parents. In short, the greatest risk to wealth is continuing to let it go untaxed.' The Scottish Greens have also recently made fresh calls for a wealth tax in response to 'soaring' CEO pay. Discussing new figures which showed that some British Executives' pay had reached over 100 times that of the average worker, MSP Maggie Chapman said: 'A wealth tax is now a necessity, to make sure that those who have enriched themselves the most pay their fair share.' Rachel Reeves refused to be drawn on a wealth tax when quizzed by journalists earlier this month. She said the UK Government had to 'get the balance right on taxation' but stressed the 'number one priority' was growing the economy.
Reuters
an hour ago
- Reuters
Hamas accepts proposed deal for ceasefire with Israel and hostage release, Egyptian source says
CAIRO, Aug 18 (Reuters) - Hamas has accepted the latest proposal for a 60-day ceasefire with Israel that includes the return of half the hostages the group holds in Gaza and Israel's release of some Palestinian prisoners, an Egyptian official source said on Monday. Senior Hamas official Basem Naim wrote on Facebook: "The movement has handed over its approval to the new proposal presented by the mediators." There was no immediate response from Israel. The Egyptian official source said the latest proposal included a suspension of Israeli military operations for 60 days and a path to a comprehensive deal to end the nearly two-year war. A source familiar with the matter said the proposal was nearly identical to one put forward previously by U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff, which Israel had accepted. Israel's plans to seize control of Gaza City have stirred alarm abroad and at home where tens of thousands of Israelis on Sunday held some of the largest protests since the war began, urging a deal to end the fighting and free the remaining 50 hostages held in Gaza since the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023. Israeli officials believe 20 are alive. The planned offensive has spurred Egyptian and Qatari ceasefire mediators to step up efforts to forge a deal. Thousands of Palestinians fearing an imminent Israeli ground offensive have left their homes in eastern areas of Gaza City, now under constant Israeli bombardment, for points to the west and south in the shattered territory. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has described Gaza City as Hamas' last big urban bastion. But, with Israel already holding 75% of Gaza, the military has warned that expanding the offensive could endanger hostages still alive and draw troops into protracted and deadly guerrilla warfare. Dani Miran, whose son Omri was taken hostage on October 7, said he feared the consequences of an Israeli ground offensive in Gaza City. "I'm scared that my son would be hurt," he told Reuters in Tel Aviv on Monday. In Gaza City, many Palestinians have also been calling for protests to demand an end to a war that has demolished much of the territory and wrought a humanitarian disaster, and for Hamas to intensify talks to avert the Israeli ground offensive. An Israeli armoured incursion into Gaza City could displace hundreds of thousands of people, many of whom have been uprooted multiple times during the war. Ahmed Mheisen, Palestinian shelter manager in Beit Lahiya, a war-devastated suburb abutting eastern Gaza City, said 995 families had departed the area in recent days for the south. With the Israeli offensive looming, Mheisen put the number of tents needed for emergency shelter at 1.5 million, saying Israel had allowed only 120,000 tents into the territory during a January-March ceasefire. The U.N. humanitarian office said last week 1.35 million people were already in need of emergency shelter items in Gaza. 'I am heading south because I need to ease my mental state," Mousa Obaid, a Gaza City resident, told Reuters. "I do not want to keep moving left and right endlessly. There is no life left, and as you can see, living conditions are hard, prices are high, and we have been without work for over a year and a half." A protest by unions is scheduled for Thursday in Gaza City, and people took to social media platforms vowing to participate, which will raise pressure on Hamas. The last round of indirect ceasefire talks ended in deadlock in late July with the sides trading blame for its collapse. Israel says it will agree to cease hostilities if all the hostages are released and Hamas lays down its arms - the latter demand publicly rejected by the Islamist group until a Palestinian state is established. A Hamas official told Reuters earlier on Monday the group rejects Israeli demands to disarm or expel its leaders from Gaza. Sharp differences also appear to remain over the extent of an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and how humanitarian aid will be delivered around the enclave, where malnutrition is rife and aid groups warn of unfolding famine. U.S. President Donald Trump wrote on his social media platform on Monday: "We will only see the return of the remaining hostages when Hamas is confronted and destroyed!!! The sooner this takes place, the better the chances of success will be." On Saturday, the Israeli military said it was preparing to help equip Gazans with tents and other shelter equipment ahead of relocating them from combat zones to the south of the enclave. It did not provide further details on quantities or how long it would take to get the equipment into the enclave. "Existing tents where people are living (in the south) have worn out and won't protect people against rainwater. There are no new tents in Gaza because of the Israeli restrictions on aid at the border crossings," Palestinian economist Mohammad Abu Jayyab told Reuters. He said some Gaza City families had begun renting property and shelters in the south and moved in their belongings. "Some people learned from previous experience, and they don't want to be taken by surprise. Also, some think it is better to move earlier to find a space," Abu Jayyab added. The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed across the border into southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages back to Gaza, according to Israeli tallies. More than 61,000 Palestinians have since been killed in Israel's ensuing air and ground war in Gaza, according to local health officials who do not distinguish between fighters and non-combatants. Five more Palestinians have died of malnutrition and starvation in the past 24 hours, the Gaza health ministry said on Monday, raising the number of people who died of those causes to 263, including 112 children, since the war started. Israel disputed the figures provided by the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory.
BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
DR Congo: M23 rebels suspend peace talks with government
The main rebel group in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, the M23, has walked away from peace talks with the government, saying it will not return unless the authorities adhere to a previous ceasefire between the two sides escalated in January, when the M23 captured large parts of the mineral-rich east, including the regional capital Qatar last month, the rebels and the government signed a ceasefire agreement, intended as a step towards a permanent peace on Monday, as negotiations were set to resume, the M23 said its representatives were not present in Qatar. M23 spokesperson Lawrence Kanyuka told the BBC's Great Lakes service that the Congolese government "doesn't want peace".How Trump wants the US to cash in on mineral-rich DR Congo's peace dealWhat's the fighting in DR Congo all about?He accused the authorities of not respecting the provisions contained in the ceasefire deal, but DR Congo's military denies this alleged that government forces had continued to attack rebel positions, despite the agreement stating that both sides must refrain from the Congolese armed forces accused the M23 of launching attacks almost daily in the North Kivu and South Kivu Qatar peace deal was supposed to be signed by Sunday, an unnamed official from Qatar told the AFP news agency that a draft agreement had been shared with DR Congo and the agreement runs alongside a peace deal between DR Congo and Rwanda, which was brokered by the US in Congo, the UN and numerous Western powers have accused Rwanda of backing the M23. Despite participating in the Washington peace talks, Rwanda has long denied the allegations against Washington peace deal, hailed by President Donald Trump as a "glorious triumph", could grant the US access to DR Congo's vast mineral it is the latest in a long line of failed peace deals in the the ongoing conflict, thousands of people have been killed and hundreds of thousands of civilians forced from their homes, the UN says. More stories from DR Congo: Listen: Why DR Congo is sponsoring FC Barcelona The would-be saint murdered 'mafia-style' for refusing bribesInside the Congolese mine vital to mobile phones, as rebels give BBC rare access Go to for more news from the African us on Twitter @BBCAfrica, on Facebook at BBC Africa or on Instagram at bbcafrica
