Sentencing Factors (18 U.S.C. § 3553)
Governs the imposition of a sentence in federal criminal cases. § 3553(a) lists the factors courts must consider; § 3553(b) originally made the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines mandatory but was modified by Booker.
§ 3553(a) — Factors to Be Considered
Courts must impose a sentence sufficient, but not greater than necessary to comply with the purposes in § 3553(a)(2):
3553(a)(1) — Nature of Offense and Defendant’s History
- Nature and circumstances of the offense
- History and characteristics of the defendant
3553(a)(2) — Purposes of Sentencing
- Retribution — to reflect the seriousness of the offense, promote respect for law, provide just punishment
- Deterrence — adequate deterrence to criminal conduct (general deterrence)
- Incapacitation — protect the public from further crimes
- Rehabilitation — provide defendant with educational, vocational, medical, or other treatment
3553(a)(3)–(7) — Additional Factors
- The kinds of sentences and ranges established by the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines
- The need to avoid unwarranted sentencing disparities among defendants with similar records convicted of similar conduct
- The need to provide restitution to victims
Booker and Advisory Guidelines
United States v. Booker (2005): The Sixth Amendment requires that any fact (other than a prior conviction) that increases the mandatory Guidelines range must be found by a jury beyond a reasonable doubt, not a judge by a preponderance. The remedy: Guidelines are advisory, not mandatory. Courts must calculate the Guidelines range, then consider the § 3553(a) factors and impose a reasonable sentence.
Gall v. United States (2007): appellate review of sentences is for abuse of discretion. A sentence within the Guidelines range is presumptively reasonable on appeal; a sentence outside the range requires justification proportional to the extent of the deviation.