Imagine for a moment, you have been accused of several crimes. At trial, you are found not guilty on all the charges except for one. Let's say that this is least serious of all your charges. While you wish you had been acquitted on all charges, 5/6 is pretty good. You anticipate a minor sentence, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel….but then you get to sentencing, and the judge starts saying your sentence is going to be just as severe as it would have if you had been found guilty of everything. How is it possible to get found not guilty but punished anyway? Today, Hunter spoke with criminal defense attorney Andrea Jaeger to discuss how the federal legal system allows for acquitted conduct sentencing.

Guests:

Andrea Jaeger, Criminal Defense Attorney, Iowa

Resources:

U.S. v Watts

https://casetext.com/case/united-states-v-watts

Coverage

https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/LSB/LSB11037

https://www.ussc.gov/about/news/press-releases/december-14-2023

https://reason.com/2023/12/20/sentencing-commission-again-proposes-restricting-judges-use-of-acquitted-conduct/

https://www.grassley.senate.gov/news/news-releases/grassley-durbin-introduce-bipartisan-bicameral-legislation-to-prohibit-punishment-of-acquitted-conduct

Contact Hunter Parnell:

[email protected]

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