Deference, Tolerance, and Numbers: A Response to Professor Wright's View of the Sentencing Commission

Authors

Kevin Cole

Library of Congress Authority File

http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n79122466

http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n92005671.html

Document Type

Article

Abstract

The United States Sentencing Commission promulgates the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which greatly constrain judicial discretion in choosing the sentence for federal crimes. One commentator, Professor Ronald Wright, has argued that the willingness of the courts and Congress to defer to a guideline promulgated by the Commission should depend on whether the Commission has justified the guideline by reference to empirical evidence. This Article explores the theoretical and practical difficulties of giving such effect to empirical justifications.

Recommended Citation

Kevin Cole, Deference, Tolerance, and Numbers: A Response to Professor Wright's View of the Sentencing Commission, 31 San Diego L. Rev. 651 (1994).
Available at: https://digital.sandiego.edu/sdlr/vol31/iss3/4