Search Results for: crack cocaine

Holder announces expanded clemency guidelines for convicted drug offenders

April 21, 2014 03:08:48 PM

US Attorney General Eric Holder announced Monday that the Department of Justice (DOJ) is expanding its criteria for recommending clemency to federal prisoners convicted of certain drug crimes. Holder's announcement recapped the...

January 27, 2014 04:05:28 PM

The US Supreme Court ruled Monday in Burrage v. US to relax sentencing guidelines for drug dealers. Marcus Burrage was convicted of distribution of heroin causing death under 21 USC § 841 ,...

December 20, 2013 02:27:33 PM

President Barack Obama on Thursday commuted the sentences of eight inmates currently serving lengthly prison terms for crack cocaine offenses, citing the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 (FSA) . The FSA reduced significant disparities...

November 13, 2013 12:37:19 PM

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) published a study on Wednesday finding that 3,278 Americans are currently serving life sentences without parole for nonviolent offenses. The study, entitled "A Living Death: Life without...

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The War on Drugs

November 1, 2013 10:14:37 AM

The US War on Drugs started in earnest during the 1970's. The US Congress passed the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act in 1970, following the spread of recreational drug use during the 1960's and of drug addictions of...

May 19, 2013 11:36:05 AM

The US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit on Friday ruled that people convicted of crack cocaine offenses have a right to resentencing hearings under the Fair Sentencing Act (FSA) ....

September 24, 2012 04:30:00 PM

Perry Moriearty, University of Minnesota School of Law

June 21, 2012 02:06:09 PM

The US Supreme Court ruled 5-4 Thursday that the Fair Sentencing Act (FSA) , which reduces minimum sentences for crack-cocaine convictions, applies to defendants who were sentenced after the act was in place,...

April 18, 2012 07:41:44 AM

The US Supreme Court heard oral arguments Tuesday in Dorsey v. United States on whether minimum sentencing mandates in the Fair Sentencing Act (FSA) should be applied to crimes...

November 1, 2011 11:10:17 AM

The US Sentencing Commission (USSC) released new guidelines Tuesday that will reduce the federal minimum sentencing guidelines for those convicted on charges related to crack cocaine. They also published a 645-page report assessing the impact of...

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THIS DAY @ LAW

Line of Demarcation divides the New World between Spain and Portugal

On May 4, 1493, Pope Alexander VI promulgated the Line of Demarcation, dividing the New World between Spain and Portugal in response the return of Christopher Columbus from his discovery of the American continents. However, neither country was entirely satisfied with the placement of the Line. A year later on June 7, 1494, the two nations signed the Treaty of Tordesillas, which moved the Line of Demarcation further west, giving Portugal claim to Brazil.

Kent State student shootings precipitated lawsuits

On May 4, 1970, National Guardsmen at Kent State University opened fire on students protesting the US invasion of Cambodia, killing four.

Review a legal chronology of the Kent State shootings, from May 5, 1970 (the day the FBI investigation started) to January 4, 1979 (the day the state of Ohio reached an out-of-court settlement for $675,000 with victims and relatives of victims).