Category Archives: Sentencing

Categorical Approach: Longer Federal Sentences With Past Convictions

Things can get darker for those with past criminal convictions and a new federal arrest. There are times when new convictions will result in enhanced (greater, longer) punishments based upon prior criminal offenses.  How? Federal law will require the defendant’s sentence be boosted in time to be served behind bars because of something in the…


Retroactive US Sentencing Guideline (USSG) Amendments 2023

Those accused in federal court, no matter which state or which crime is involved, will have punishment after conviction determined in accordance with the United States Sentencing Guidelines (USSG) compiled and published by the United States Sentencing Commission (USSC).  This is a critical difference between the state and federal criminal justice systems. What is this…


Alien Smuggling in Texas: Federal Felonies & United States Sentencing Guidelines

The Texas border with Mexico extends 1254 miles. Along this international boundary there are currently 28 bridges and border crossings (including a couple of dams and a hand-drawn ferry) for travel between the two jurisdictions.  And of course, there are long stretches of open riverbank along the Rio Grande where the waterway provides a natural…


When Businesses are Charged with Crimes: Organizational Offenders

First things first, we all know they’re not people.  In legal jargon, corporations are “legal entities” that exist through the operation of state law (usually) under things like the Texas Business Organizations Code, where “corporation” is defined as “…an entity governed as a corporation under Title 2 or 7.  The term includes a for-profit corporation,…


When Someone Becomes a “Career Offender” under Federal Law

Al Capone is reported to have explained his activities during Prohibition as, “I am just a businessman, giving the people what they want,” but for many, there are few that better typify the career criminal than Al Capone, deemed “the most prominent figure of organized crime.” Read, Hipango Jr, Waata, Robert Smith, and Léo-Paul Dana….


Punishing Defendants for Exercising Their Right to Trial

Criminal defense attorneys practicing here in Texas, both in state and federal court, know all too well that it is a common practice for the government to punish defendants for exercising their rights – especially their right to a trial.  This is true despite the clear constitutional right to trial found in the Sixth Amendment…


SCOTUS, USSC, and Proposed USSG Amendment Addressing Acquitted Conduct

The scenario:  someone is charged with a serious crime in federal court.  There is no plea deal; the case goes to trial.  Both sides rest, and the case goes to the jury.  The jury deliberates and returns with a “not guilty” verdict. This is great for the accused, right?  Sure.  But that verdict is not…


Federal Sentencing for Zero-Point Offenders: New USSG §4C1.1 Effective November 2023

For those who are arrested and prosecuted in Texas for federal crimes, sentencing upon conviction is very different than if they had been charged for violations of Texas criminal law.  In federal matters, an independent federal agency created by Congress in 1984, the United States Sentencing Commission (USSC), will fix their punishment through its sentencing…


Drug-Induced Homicide Prosecutions in Texas: Overdose Murders

Fentanyl arrests in Texas may soon come with specific felony murder charges. Fentanyl is changing things in Texas and across the country, as more and more law enforcement efforts are targeting the manufacturing and distribution of this particular illegal drug and controlled substance. For more, read our earlier discussions in Texas Governor’s Designation of Mexican Cartels…


Federal Sentencing for Drug Couriers and Drug Mules

At perhaps the lowest rung of the organizational ladder for illegal cartel operations here in Texas and elsewhere is the courier or “mule.”  These are the people who physically transport or move stuff from one point to another.  Maybe it’s across international borders or over state lines.  It may be on foot (i.e., ingested); by…