Law Commons^™

State Sentencing Policy And New Prison Admissions, Ben Trachtenberg

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

As the academy's focus has turned to sentencing in the wake of Blakely v. Washington and United States v. Booker, most commentators have continued their benign neglect of actual sentencing practices as they occur in state courts, not to mention whether and how such policies are effective in achieving the goals of criminal justice.

This Note examines trends in state sentencing policies and prison populations from the perspective of a would-be state reformer hoping to decrease her state's prison budget. Economic pressures, efficiency arguments, and social justice claims have combined to cause some states to desire lower prison populations, …

A Proposal To Abolish The Office Of United States Trustee, Peter C. Alexander

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

In this Article, Professor Alexander reviews the creation and development of the Office of U.S. Trustee, an agency within the executive branch of the federal government, authorized to oversee the administration of all bankruptcy estates. Alexander asserts that the agency has expanded its scope beyond its original mission, becoming a huge bureaucracy that is widely criticized. By contrast, Alexander also discusses the Bankruptcy Administrator Program, a bankruptcy oversight system that exists within the federal districts in Alabama and North Carolina. He presents the positive and negative comments about that program and concludes that it is a more efficient system than …