Gregory L. Poe Aug 24th, 2010The Ex Post Facto Clause and the United States Sentencing Guidelines
The Second Circuit recently decided a case, United States v. Kumar, Nos. 06-5654-cr, 06-5482-cr (August 12, 2010), that implicates a basic principle of punishment: May a defendant’s sentence in a federal criminal case be increased based on sentencing guidelines that were created after the criminal conduct at issue? According to two members of the panel, [...]
Gregory L. Poe Feb 6th, 2010What is the Purpose of Restitution in a Federal Criminal Case?
A recent Tenth Circuit case, United States v. Speakman, No. 08-1332 (Feb. 2, 2010), presents an interesting question in federal criminal practice: May a district court order a defendant to pay restitution for the purpose of punishment even if the payment does not compensate the victim? According to the Tenth Circuit, the answer is no. [...]
Gregory L. Poe Dec 31st, 2009Sentencing in Fraud Cases Involving Shareholder Loss
Eventually, the Supreme Court probably will need to decide whether sentences in criminal fraud cases involving publicly traded stock may be based on relatively crude estimates of shareholder loss. In civil cases, the Court already has spoken. In Dura Pharmaceuticals v. Broudo, 544 U.S. 336 (2005), the Court held in a case brought under [...]
