S. Sentencing

This seminar will explore sentencing law and procedure with particular attention to the federal system. After a general consideration of the purposes of sentencing and of the rationales for determinate and indeterminate sentencing regimes, we will use recent developments in federal sentencing law as a vehicle for looking at how sentencing authority can be allocated among the legislative, judicial and legislative branches, and how sentencing regimes interact with plea bargaining dynamics.

Preference will be given to students who have taken Criminal Adjudication
Students will write three reaction papers (2 pages max) during the course of the semester, and a 15-20 page paper on a topic to be selected with the instructors' approval.