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April 11, 2008
Notable new Fifth Circuit opinion on post-Gall sentence review
A helpful reader pointed me to the Fifth Circuit's work in United States v. Bonilla, No. 06-40894 (5th Cir. Apr. 10, 2008) (available here) which was released just today and grapples with the sentencing process the Supreme Court laid out in Gall. Here is one of various interesting snippets:
Examining the full sentencing record reveals the district court’s reasons for the chosen sentence and allows for effective review by this court. Our task would have been easier had the district court stated its reasons explicitly on the record, a procedure we strongly recommend. A clear statement of reasons on the record also serves to prevent the inefficiency that would result from remand and resentencing if on appeal we had been unable to determine the court’s reasons from the record. In this case however, our review makes clear both the reasons for the sentence and their adequacy as a matter of law.
Regular readers probably do not need too many hints to figure out which party's sentencing appeal is being rejected in Bonilla.
April 11, 2008 at 01:25 PM | Permalink
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Comments
Someone please tell me if I am wrong but I think the Gall ruling is going to help first time non violent offenders maybe white collar. They will see the benifits in Gall. No record community ties family responsibility. A judge can now find a way to avoid sending them to prison. Gall wont really effect someone with multiple prior arests.
Posted by: | Apr 11, 2008 1:53:34 PM
A great dissent by Judge Garza. It's also worth noting that the district court judge -- three years after Booker -- still described his job as giving a "reasonable" sentence. *sigh*
Posted by: | Apr 11, 2008 3:44:29 PM
Has Judge Davis become the 5th Circuit's sentencing guru? (maybe he already was and I didn't notice)
Posted by: Jay | Apr 12, 2008 2:57:05 AM
I don't think Judge Davis has any special claim to sentencing guru in the 5th Circuit. Other important sentencing decisions in the Fifth have been authored by Judge Smith, Judge Owen, and Judge Benavides.
Posted by: | Apr 12, 2008 12:45:59 PM
