Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Law Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology

Fair sentencing act

Articles 1 - 1 of 1

Full-Text Articles in Law

Congress Blewett By Not Explicitly Making The Fair Sentencing Act Of 2010 Retroactive, Andrew Cockroft Jan 2017

Congress Blewett By Not Explicitly Making The Fair Sentencing Act Of 2010 Retroactive, Andrew Cockroft

Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology

In 2013, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals was the first Circuit Court to retroactively apply the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010. The Fair Sentencing Act sought to end the discriminatory effects of the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986 and its treatment of one gram of crack cocaine as the equivalent to one hundred grams of powder cocaine. The Fair Sentencing Act was meant to remedy the injustices brought about by the infamous 100:1 ratio in crack-cocaine and powder cocaine minimum sentencing. Despite this purpose, the Fair Sentencing Act does not contain language that explicitly and unequivocally requires that the …