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Appellate Review Of Sentences: Reconsidering Deference, Michael O'Hear

Michael O'Hear

For the past three decades, the national debate on sentencing policy has focused on the strengths and weaknesses of mandatory guidelines, with guidelines proponents arguing that unfettered judicial discretion at sentencing violates rule-of-law values. However, the number of states with mandatory guidelines, never a majority, has been declining in recent years, and even the federal system switched from mandatory to advisory guidelines in 2005. The trend away from mandatory guidelines has prompted renewed interest in the potential for appellate review of sentences to address rule-of-law concerns. But the appellate courts themselves have long resisted robust review on the ground that …