TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Stacey Shrader Joslin on Oct 14, 2014

The U.S. Supreme Court today declined to take up a case involving so-called acquitted conduct, in which defendants are sentenced based on charges they are acquitted of in trial. In the case before the court, three defendants had been convicted of distributing crack cocaine, but acquitted of more serious charges of being part of a drug conspiracy. When it came time for sentencing, however, the trial judge added at least 15 years to each man’s prison term based on the conspiracy charges. Lawyers for the defendants called the practice “Kafkaesque.” Three of the justices voted to hear the case to decide whether judges have discretion to lengthen prison terms in such circumstances. WRCB-TV has more from the Associated Press.