Two great new judicious commentaries on the federal sentencing guidelines

A helpful reader made sure I did not miss this latest issue of the Hofstra Law Review, which starts with a Colloquim on the topic "Thirty Years Later: A Look Back at the Original U.S. Sentencing Guidelines."  The issue contains  two notable articles authored by two notable jurists.  Here are links to the pieces and their opening paragraphs:

"The Original U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and Suggestions for a Fairer Future" by Stephen G. Breyer

Thank you very much. It is terribly nice for me to be here at Hofstra.  Thirty years ago, as the original Sentencing Guidelines were going into effect, I spoke here to highlight some of the key compromises we as Commissioners reached in writing them.  Ten years later, in 1998, I revisited the Guidelines at the Roman L. Hruska Institute in Nebraska to discuss their history and to offer my recommendations for discussion following a decade of their application. I am here today to commemorate the history of the original Sentencing Guidelines, and to again offer my suggestions to Congress, the Department of Justice, and to the current United States Sentencing Commission.  While much has changed since the Guidelines were considered in those speeches, my suggestions remain the same.

"The Federal Sentencing Guidelines: A Good Idea Badly Implemented" by Jon O. Newman

The best way to mark the thirtieth anniversary of the Federal Sentencing Guidelines is to candidly admit that they are a classic example of a good idea badly implemented.  I propose to consider how the good idea originated, how the first Federal Sentencing Commission implemented it, how the Supreme Court has dealt with the Sentencing Guidelines, what is good about the Guidelines, what are the principal defects of the Guidelines, and the most important step that can now be taken to improve the Guidelines and realize the expectations of those of us who favored sentencing guidelines.