COVID-19 and Early Release

We at Brown Law are doing everything in our power to respond to the coronavirus pandemic and ensure the safety of our clients who are in prisons and jails in Maryland and across the country. It is our belief that no detained person is safe in confinement – where medical care is inadequate and where…

Life Sentence Defeated in Federal Court

The Firm is happy to announce that today we defeated a life sentence in federal court. Eleven years ago, while represented by different counsel, D.E. was sentenced to life imprisonment for a non-violent drug offense. Because he had at least two prior drug convictions, he received a mandatory life sentence, without the possibility of parole….

Reform on Hold?

In the past two years we have heard that Congress is on the brink of passing legislation that would reform our criminal justice system — by shifting away from the practice of warehousing drug offenders in prison, and moving in the direction of rehabilitation. This was one thing, it was reported, upon which Republicans and…

Baltimore City Jail: Worse Than Ever

More than two years have passed since federal prosecutors handed down a massive indictment charging gang members and correctional officers with operating a drug conspiracy inside the Baltimore City Detention Center (BCDC). The story gained national media attention and the U.S. Attorney’s Office trumpeted its success in getting convictions of all but a few of…

Supreme Court Strikes Down Part of Armed Career Criminal Act

Lost in the excitement over the Supreme Court’s blockbuster decisions last week was a significant, albeit technical, case dealing with federal sentencing under the Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA). The ruling should help a significant number of federal defendants who are serving harsh mandatory sentences. These people may be entitled to substantial sentence reductions. In…

Fourth Circuit Disappoints in Whiteside

The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals this month issued a disappointing en banc opinion in U.S. v. Whiteside. At issue was whether Whiteside could obtain relief from a sentence in which he had been wrongly classified as a career offender. The panel held that he could not get relief because his petition was filed too late. The…

Drug Reduction to be Retroactive

In an extraordinary decision with sweeping consequences to federal drug sentencing, the United States Sentencing Commission has voted unanimously to make the two-point drug reduction for federal prisoners fully retroactive. According to the Commission, the amendment will have an instruction that prohibits any person from getting released until Nov 1, 2015. It is estimated that…