About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

28 Fla. St. U. L. Rev. 935 (2000-2001)
Mandatory Minimum Sentences: Exemplifying the Law of Unintended Consequences

handle is hein.journals/flsulr28 and id is 949 raw text is: MANDATORY MINIMUM SENTENCES: EXEMPLIFYING THE LAW OF UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES CHRISTOPHER MASCHARKA* I. INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................. 935 II. THE RISE OF MANDATORY MINIMUM PROVISIONS ............................................. 938 III. CREATING UNIFORMITY IN SENTENCING? .......................................................... 942 IV. MANDATORY PROVISIONS: INEFFICIENT AT ATTAINING DRUG AND CRIME PREVENTION GOALS ........................................................................................... 945 A. Economics and Sentencing ......................................................................... 945 B. Certainty u. Severity in Sentencing ............................................................ 946 C. Factors Undermining the Legislative Intent of Mandatory Minimums ..... 947 D. Allocating Resources to the Big Business of Corrections ............................ 949 V. THE CALCULATION OF DRUG WEIGHTS ............................................................. 952 A . Cocaine ........................................................................................................ 953 B . L S D ............................................................................................................. 954 C . Hydrocodone ............................................................................................... 957 VI. A FERTILE MANDATORY MINIMUM SENTENCING CLIMATE ................................ 964 A. Legislative M otives and M indsets ............................................................. 964 B. The Public's Concerns about Drugs and Crime .......................................... 965 C. Entrenched Camps in the Drug War-Little Room for a Middle G round ........................................................................................................ 967 D. The Role of Expert Opinions in Sentencing Policy ..................................... 970 VII. C ONCLUSION ...................................................................................................... 974 I. INTRODUCTION Mandatory minimum sentences, once rare in the criminal law sys- tem, have experienced a dramatic increase in popularity. This politi- cal phenomenon has enjoyed wide bipartisan support: since the mid- 1980s, Congress has routinely passed new crime measures contain- ing mandatory minimum sentences.' In spite of the political popular- ity of this sentencing tool, many commentators are concerned about the social and economic effects resulting from the proliferation of mandatory minimum sentencing statutes. Chief Justice Rehnquist has commented that these measures are perhaps a good example of the law of unintended consequences.2 * J.D., Florida State University College of Law, 2001; BA., Economics, University of South Florida, 1998. 1. See, e.g., Alcohol and Drug Abuse Act of 1986, Pub. L. No. 99-570, 100 Stat. 3207 (1986) (codified as amended in scattered sections of 18 U.S.C., 21 U.S.C., 31 U.S.C.); Om- nibus Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988, Pub. L No. 100-690, § 6470(a), 102 Stat. 4377 (codified as amended at 21 U.S.C. 5§ 846, 963 (2000)). More than one scholar has noted that be- tween 1986 and the mid-1990s, Congress passed these measures about every two years, or every election year. See, e.g., Carl M. Cannon, America- All Locked Up, NATL J., Aug. 15, 1998, at 1906. 2. William H. Rehnquist, Luncheon Address (June 18, 1993), in U.S. SENTENCING COMM'N, DRUGS & VIOLENCE IN AMERICA: PROCEEDINGS OF THE INAUGURAL SYMPOSIUM ON CRIME AND PUNISHMENT IN THE UNITED STATES: JUNE 16-18, 1993, WASHINGTON D.C. 286

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Purchase Access

Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most