Peugh v. United States (2012)
- Docket
- 12-62
- Decided
- 2012-01-01
Summary
Question: Does the use of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines in effect at the time of sentencing rather than those in effect at the time of the offense violate the Ex Post Facto Clause if there is significant risk that the newer Guidelines would result in a longer sentence? Conclusion: Yes. Justice Sonia Sotomayor delievered the opinion for the 5-4 majority. The Court held that Peugh's sentencing violated the ex post facto clause because, although the Supreme Court has held that the Sentencing Guidelines are not binding on lower courts, the Guidelines still must be used as an initial benchmark for sentencing. By setting an initial benchmark, the Guidelines forbid the government from altering the formula used to calculate an appropriate sentencing range. The lower court's refusal to apply the previous Guidelines in this case created a type of ex post facto law that changed the nature of a crime by inflicting a greater punishment than would be applied when the crime was committed. In his dissent, Justice Clarence Thomas wrote that the Guidelines are not binding on lower courts, so they have no legal effect on a defendant's sentences. He also argued that any risk that a defendant might receive a harsher sentence results from the Guidelines' persuasive power, not any legal effect. Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr., Justice Samuel A. Alito, Jr., and Justice Antonin Scalia joined in the dissent. Justice Alito, joined by Justice Scalia, also filed a separate dissent in which he argued that retroactive application of advisory guidelines do not violate the test established in California Dept. of Corrections v. Morales. Under that test, laws only violate the ex post facto clause if they create a "sufficient risk" of increasing the measure of punishment attached to a crime.