More post-Booker reports in the papers

Yet again there are lots of reports in newspapers about post-Booker federal sentencings (some previous stories are assembled here and here).  Though we get a much fuller view of Booker's impact and meaning from written opinions (such as the thoughtful work in Judge Pratt's Myers opinion), these articles still are quite revealing:

• This article from Kansas City quotes US District Judge Fernando Gaitan calling the guidelines "fair and reasonable" but also "mechanical" and "not always appropriate" in the course of impose a year and a day prison term in a theft case.  (The guidelines called for 18-24 months, though the defense was urging probation.)

• This article from Louisiana reports on the sentencings of three defendants involved in a major drug ring.  The kingpin received life imprisonment from US District Judge Tucker L. Melançon, but his wife and father were sentenced to the statutory mandatory minimum of 10 years' imprisonment rather than the guideline sentences of around 20 years.

• This article from Seattle reports on the sentencing of the 19-year-old kid who created a variant of the Blaster worm computer virus.  The article suggests this 18 month sentence imposed was at the bottom of the recommended guideline range, but it also indicates that prosecutors were urging a longer sentence.