Federal Defenders of New York Second Circuit Blog

fair sentencing act

Section 404(b) of the First Step Act reaches back only to the Fair Sentencing Act’s crack-quantity thresholds and does not carry § 401, narrowing the definition of § 841’s triggering predicates, with it.

by

United States v. VanHoesen, No. 24-2692 (2d Cir. Aug. 24, 2026) (Cabranes, Livingston (writing), Menashi). The Second Circuit affirmed VanHoesen’s sentence of time served and eight years of supervised release, imposed on a § 404(b) First Step Act resentencing. The sole issue is the term of supervision. Judge Livingston’s opinion affirms the eight-year term because … Read more

Favorable decision in a First Step Act case, concerning the defendant’s eligibility for relief and the nature of the proceeding under the Act: United States v. Rose, No. 03-CR-1501, _F.3d_, 2019 WL 2314479 (S.D.N.Y. May 24, 2019)

by

Section 404 of the First Step Act of 2018,  Pub. L. No. 115-391, 132 Stat. 5194 (2018),  empowers district courts to “impose a reduced sentence” on people who were convicted of certain cocaine base (crack cocaine) offenses before August 3, 2010, when the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 was enacted. It makes retroactive — to … Read more

PC World

by

United States v. Acoff, No. 10-285-cr (2d Cir. February 10, 2011, amended February 11, 2011) (Calabresi, Lynch, CJJ, Murtha, DJ) In this case, the defendant was convicted of a crack cocaine offense that, under the old law, carried a five-year mandatory minimum. But the district court refused to impose it. He gave the defendant fifteen … Read more