The biases in crack sentencing

Pardon the pun in the title of this post, but it sets up coverage of notable recent discussions of crack sentencing.  First, through two strong commentaries, the Chicago Tribune here and the Washington Post here spotlight how the cocaine-induced death of basketball star Len Bias 20 years ago was a catalyst for the development of the 100:1 crack/powder ratio and also Congress's modern affinity for harmful mandatory minimum sentencing legislation.

Second, the Sacramento News and Review today has this terrific article providing a lot of background and insight on the Starks case in the Ninth Circuit, which may address the authority of district judges deviating from the crack guidelines after Booker.  The on-line version of the article provides links to some of my coverage of this case and related issues.

A few recent related posts on crack sentencing:

• Crack sentencing and the anti-parsimony pandemic
• Crackin' good arguments, Gromit!
• Another crack at an amicus brief on crack sentencing
• Reflecting 20 years after the crack panic
• Noticing different legislative reactions to meth and crack
• New ACS issue brief on crack sentencing disparity
• Insightful report and analysis of Booker on crack