More strong analysis of Cunningham opinions

Vik Amar, writing this time with his colleague Aaron Rappaport, has at FindLaw this great second commentary on Cunningham.  The first one (available here) was entitled “The Supreme Court Invalidates California’s ‘Determinate Sentencing’ Law.”   This second piece has the title, “Justice Alito’s Dissent in Cunningham v. California: How Can Someone So Wrong, Be So Right?” and here is its set up:

One of the most interesting features of Cunningham was Justice Alito’s intricate dissenting opinion, which was also joined by Justices Kennedy and Breyer.  As one of Justice Alito’s first opinions in this controversial area of criminal constitutional law — and one of his most prominent opinions to date more generally — his writing deserves careful study. Particularly interesting is how his dissent highlights and explores one of the great puzzles emerging from this line of cases: When, and why, does the exercise of judicial discretion at sentencing violate the Sixth Amendment?