Brown v. Plata : Renewing the Call to End Mandatory Minimum Sentencing
2013; Fredric G. Levin College of Law; Volume: 65; Issue: 3 Linguagem: Inglês
ISSN
1045-4241
Autores Tópico(s)Legal Systems and Judicial Processes
ResumoAfter more than twenty years of litigation, the United States Supreme Court finally determined whether California’s overcrowded prison system created a constitutional violation in Brown v. Plata. With prisons and jails across the country operating at well over 100% capacity, the Court concluded what advocates had been screaming for over a decade: prison overcrowding cannot be tolerated, and the only remedy is to reduce prison populations. What the Court failed to resolve, however, was what the primary cause of prison overcrowding is and how states and the federal government are supposed to comply with capacity expectations amid concerns for public safety and tough-oncrime politics. This Note explores the most significant cause of prison overcrowding in the United States: mandatory minimum sentencing. Part I examines the evolution of mandatory minimum sentencing schemes and how the United States has arrived at the situation it finds itself in today. Part II discusses the current state of prison overcrowding in the United States and its economic implications. Part III analyzes how the Supreme Court’s ruling in Brown v. Plata relates to mandatory minimum sentences. Finally, Part IV suggests solutions to our mandatory minimum mayhem. Overall, this Note offers the unavoidable conclusion that mandatory minimum sentencing in the United States must end. INTRODUCTION 856 I. INDETERMINATE VS. DETERMINATE SENTENCING: AMERICA’S INCREASING OBSESSION WITH PUNISHMENT ...... 857 A. Indeterminate Inadequacy 857 B. Determinate Sentencing to the Rescue? 863 C. Determinate Disappointment 866 D. Pushing Back Against the Mandatory Minimum Mess ..... 870 II. PRISON OVERCROWDING IN THE UNITED STATES 873 ∗ J.D. expected May 2013, University of Florida Levin College of Law; B.A. 2008, University of Florida. I dedicate this Note to my Mom, Marcia, my Dad, Mark, and to all of my friends and family who have been there for me no matter what. 1 Nauman: Brown v. Plata: Renewing the Call to End Mandatory Minimum Published by UF Law Scholarship Repository, 2013 856 FLORIDA LAW REVIEW [Vol. 65 A. Overcrowding in General 873 B. Economic Implications of Incarceration 875 III. BROWN V. PLATA: AN APPEAL TO HUMAN DIGNITY, OR UPHOLDING THE ABSURD? 878 IV. THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM: HOW TO REDUCE PRISON POPULATIONS 882 A. End Mandatory Minimums and Return to Judicial Discretion 883 B. Prosecutorial Reform and Adherence to Professional Standards of Ethics 884 C. Optimal Fines as Punishment for Certain Crimes ........ 889 CONCLUSION 892
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