To protect the constitutional right to trial and discourage imposition of extended sentences for defendants who elect to go to trial instead of accepting a plea offer, and for other purposes.
This bill would protect defendants' constitutional right to go to trial by restricting judges from imposing harsher sentences simply because a defendant refuses a plea deal and chooses to be tried. The legislation amends federal sentencing law to require judges to consider whether a proposed sentence unfairly penalizes someone for exercising their trial rights and to compare sentences imposed on defendants who went to trial with those given to similarly situated defendants who accepted plea agreements. The bill explicitly grants judges the authority to impose sentences below statutory minimum requirements if doing so is necessary to prevent the sentence from becoming an unlawful penalty for choosing trial over a plea. This change would affect all federal criminal defendants and judges involved in sentencing decisions. The legislation contains no specific funding allocations or implementation timelines.
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