Advice from a former USSC Commissioner
At last month’s hearing before the US Sentencing Commission (detailed here), Professor (and former Commissioner) Michael Goldsmith advocated that, if Blakely is applied to the federal system, the Commission ought to move toward the development of simplified, Blakely-ized guidelines. (The battle over what might happen if/when Blakely is applied to the federal system is discussed a bit in this post and this post.)
Professor Goldsmith has now finished drafting, for publication in a coming issue of the Federal Sentencing Reporter, his “five step approach” to preserving the constitutionality of federal sentencing guidelines. You can download Professor Goldsmith’s thoughtful essay, in which he suggests his proposal “would both satisfy the demands of Blakely and best achieve the noble goals of the Sentencing Reform Act,” here: