Chief Judge William Young’s Magnum Opus Declaring Federal Guidelines Unconstitutional

Apparently we did not have to wait for the Supreme Court to rule in Blakely to have a blockbuster ruling that Apprendi renders the federal sentencing guidelines unconstitutional. In a truly remarkable 177-page opinion released late Monday, Chief Judge William Young of the U.S. Distict Court of the District of Massachusetts has ruled that the logic of Apprendi and Ring renders the federal sentencing guidelines unconstitutional.

Chief Judge Young’s opinion is remarkable for its scope and depth, as well as its wide-ranging criticisms of the entire fedral sentencing guidelines system. Whatever the Supreme Court’s forthcoming decision in Blakely says about Judge Young’s legal conclusion, this opinion serves as something of a “State of the System” statement about federal sentencing reform. It merits all the time it takes to read.