Supreme Court Hears Case on Gun Sentencing November 3, 2000
News Summary
The U.S. Supreme Court has begun hearing arguments on whether convicted offenders can be denied early release from prison if a firearm was present but not used in the crime, the Associated Press reported Oct. 31.The case was brought by Christopher A. Lopez of Des Moines, Iowa. He was convicted in February 1997 of possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute. Because police found a gun in his apartment at the time of arrest, Lopez's six-year federal prison sentence was extended.
A 1994 law permits the U.S. Bureau of Prisons to reduce the sentences of nonviolent inmates up to a year if they complete a prison drug-treatment program. But a Bureau rule allows prison officials to automatically deny early release to inmates who had been convicted of a crime involving use or possession of a firearm or explosive.
Lopez's lawyer said the Bureau overstepped its boundaries when it adopted the rule. But a lawyer for the U.S. Justice Department countered that the law gives the agency discretion in deciding who becomes eligible for early release.
Justice David Souter questioned why, if the U.S. Congress wanted to exclude inmates who possessed a gun, it didn't do so itself when the law was written.
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