The development of the federal sentencing guidelines  played an important role in shaping America’s criminal legal system. In 1984, Congress passed the Sentencing Reform Act  which established the U.S. Sentencing Commission. The Sentencing Commission’s primary purpose was to reduce disparities in federal sentencing. To address these disparities, the Commission would ask judges to consider a variety of factors  in their rulings including the nature of the offense committed, th

People who have been sentenced to time in prison are often treated as “others,” and our prison systems frequently fail to rehabilitate...