First Circuit affirms long sentence while suggesting future commutation

The First Circuit today in US v. Godin, No. 06-1749 (1st Cir. June 14, 2007) (available here), affirms as reasonable a within-guideline sentence of nearly 22 years’ imprisonment for a mentally ill woman who committed “a robbery that netted a few hundred dollars.”  The panel in Godin thoughtful recognizes the arguments for and against this sentence and ultimately shows deference to the district court’s sentencing judgment.  And the Godin opinion concludes with this notable paragraph:

A lower sentence could have been defended. But there was no mistake of law, the district judge made a thoughtful assessment, the result is not indefensible, and there the matter must stand. If Godin could rehabilitate herself in prison and dispel the very real threat of future harm, a responsible penal system would eventually consider a shortening of her sentence.  The President, through the commutation process, may choose to do so.

Perhaps in 2025, when Jennifer Godin still has a few years left on her sentence, perhaps President Clinton — Chelsea, that is — will take this commutation suggestion to heart.