United States Sentencing Commission

1995 Annual Report

Message from the Chairman

The President,
The Congress, and
The Judicial Conference
of the United States of America

I am pleased to transmit this Annual Report which reviews the activities and accomplishments of the United States Sentencing Commission in 1995. The report also includes descriptive statistics on implementation of the sentencing guidelines by judicial district, circuit, and across the nation.

The Sentencing Commission continued its role as a resource to all three branches of government on criminal justice issues. This responsibility was highlighted this year by four special reports to Congress on issues ranging from cocaine to fraud offenses committed against elderly victims. At the same time, we continued to fulfill our fundamental mission to develop and monitor the sentencing guidelines, conduct research and serve as a clearinghouse of information on sentencing issues, and train judges, attorneys, and probation officers on guideline application.

In 1995, the Commission identified comprehensive review of the sentencing guidelines as a top agency priority. The objective of this review is to reduce the complexity of guideline application and to assess how well the guidelines are meeting the congressional objectives outlined in the Sentencing Reform Act of 1984 and subsequent legislation.

We remain committed to developing and implementing effective sentencing policies for the federal criminal justice system in cooperation with all branches of government.

Respectfully,

Richard P. Conaboy

Chairman

The annual report is availble for downloading or viewing in .pdf format. There is a separate .pdf file for each chapter, the tables, and the figures.

Introduction
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Figures
Tables

Annual Report 1995 - Table of Contents

Title Page i
Staff Page ii
Letter From the Chairman iii
List of Figures ix
List of Tables xi
Introduction xv
Chapter One, Commission Overview 1
Organization 1
Staffing 2
Budget and Expenditures 2
Chapter Two, Guideline Amendments 5
Amendment Authority 5
Amendments Promulgated 5
Working Groups 7
Cocaine 8
Money Laundering 9
Food and Drug 9
Sex Crimes 10
Elderly and Child Victims 11
Substantial Assistance 11
Guideline Simplification 12
Guideline Assessment 13
Chapter Three, Legal Issues 15
Introduction 15
Supreme Court 15
Court Appeals 16
Relevant Conduct and Mandatory Minimum Sentences 16
Sentencing Entrapment in Drug Trafficking Cases 17
Fraud and Deceit 17
Safety Valve 18
Waivers of Appeal 18
Departures Based on Offense Characteristics 19
Departure Based on Offender Characteristics 20
Chapter Four, Guideline Training and Education 25
Training 25
Training New Appointees 25
District-Based Guideline Education 26
Hotlines 26
Calls Received in 1995 26
Temporary Assignment Program 28
Public Information/Clearinghouse 29
Publications and Training Materials 29
ASSYST 30
Chapter Five, Research 33
A. MONITORING 33
Background and Data Collection Activities 33
Statutory Requirements 33
USSC Data Collection 33
Data Collection Issues 34
Descriptive Statistic 35
Implement of the Guidelines 35
Primary Offense and Demographic Characteristics 41
Primary Offense Type 41
Race and Ethnicity 41
Gender 41
Age 46
Education 46
Mode of Conviction 51
Sentencing Information on Guideline Cases 57
Type of Sentence 57
Length of Imprisonment 57
Sentence Trends 59
Fines and Restitution 64
Sentencing Alternatives 66
Guideline Application 69
Overview 69
Chapter Two Guideline Application 69
Chapter Three Adjustments 72
Chapter Four Assessment of Criminal History 77
Determining the Applicable Sentencing Range-Chapter Five 81
Departures and Sentences Within the Guideline Range 84
Departure Rates 85
Within Guideline Range Sentences and Departures by Circuit and District 88
Discretion Under the Guidelines 88
Non -U.S. Citizens as Federal Defendants 93
Offense and Offender Characteristics for Non-U.S. Citizens 94
Guideline Drug Defendants 100
Trends in Drug Guideline Cases 109
Drug Offense Trends: Number of Cases 111
Drug Offense Trends: Demographics 111
Drug Offense Trends: Guideline Application 113
Drug Offense Trends: Departures and Sentence Length 120
Organizational Sentencing Practices 122
Organizational Guidelines 122
Offender Characteristics 124
Offense Characteristics 125
Culpability Score 125
Sanctions Imposed 126
Organizations Sentences Under Antitrust Guideline 130
Sentencing Appeals 130
Introduction 130
Appellate Data Collection 130
Summary of Information Received 131
Issues and Guidelines Appealed 132
Offense and Offender Characteristics 142
B. RESEARCH STUDIES 148
Just Punishment Research Project 148
Selective Incapacitation Project 148
Prison Impact Assessment 149
Symposium on Corporate Crime 152

Appendix A, Descriptions of Data files, Variables, and Footnotes

Appendix B, Selected Criminal Justice and Sentencing Statistics ( by District)

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure A Organization of the United States Sentencing Commission 2
Figure B Distribution of Sentenced Guideline Defendants by Primary Offense Category 42
Figure C Number of Guideline Cases Selected Offense Types and Year 44
Figure D Mode of Conviction by Sentencing Year 52
Figure E Type of Guideline Sentence Imposed 58
Figure F Average Length of Imprisonment by Grouped Primary Offense Categories and Year 61
Figure G Imprisonment Rates of Defendants Eligible for Non-Prison Sentences by Select Primary Offense Type 68
Figure H Type of Departure by Sentencing Year 86
Figure I Defendant Citizenship Status by Circuit 95
Figure J Distribution of Drug Guideline Offenses 100
Figure K Average Length of Imprisonment by Drug Type 110
Figure L Number of Drug Defendants by Drug Type and Year 112
Figure M Race by Drug Type and Year for Drug Defendants 114
Figure N Gender by Drug Type and Year for Drug Defendants 114
Figure O Citizenship Status by Drug Type and Year for Drug Defendants 115
Figure P Criminal History Status by Drug Type and Year for Drug Defendants 115
Figure Q Mode of Conviction by Drug Type and Year for Drug Defendants 117
Figure R Base Offense Level by Drug Type and Year for Drug Defendants 117
Figure S Weapon Status by Drug Type and Year for Drug Defendants 119
Figure T Role by Drug Type and Year for Drug Defendants 119
Figure U Acceptance of Responsibility by Drug Type and Year for Drug Defendants 121
Figure V Departure Status by Drug Type and Year for Drug Defendants 121
Figure W Prison Sentence Imposed by Drug Type and Year for Drug Defendants 123
Figure X Type and Disposition of Appeals Cases 136

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1 Budget Authority and Obligations 3
Table 2 Witness List: Proposed Amendments to the Sentencing Guidelines 6
Table 3 Downward Departure Factors Approved by Appellate Courts 21
Table 4 Downward Departure Factors Disapproved by Appellate Courts 22
Table 5 Upward Departure Factors Approved by Appellate Courts 23
Table 6 Upward Departure Factors Disapproved by Appellate Courts 24
Table 7 Hotline Questions Received by Guideline Section 27
Table 8 Document Submission Rate by Circuit and District 36
Table 9 Guideline Defendants by Circuit and District 39
Table 10 Distribution of Sentenced Guideline Defendants by Primary Offense Category 43
Table 11 Race of Defendant by Primary Offense Category 45
Table 12 Gender of Defendant by Primary Offense Category 47
Table 13 Age of Defendant by Primary Offense Category 48
Table 14 Age, Race, and Gender of Sentenced Guideline Defendants 49
Table 15 Education of Sentenced Guideline Defendants by Primary Offense Category 50
Table 16 Mode of Conviction by Circuit and District 53
Table 17 Mode of Conviction by Primary Offense Category 56
Table 18 Type of Sentences Imposed by Primary Offense Category 60
Table 19 Average Length of Imprisonment by Primary Offense and Criminal History Categories 62
Table 20 Fines and Restitution by Primary Offense Category 65
Table 21 Sentencing Zone by Type of Sentence Imposed 67
Table 22 Chapter Two Guideline Applied 70
Table 23 Chapter Three Guideline Application Information 73
Table 24 Acceptance of Responsibility Reduction by Primary Offense Category 76
Table 25 Chapter Four Guideline Application Information 78
Table 26 Career Offender/Armed Career Criminal Adjustments by Primary Offense Category 80
Table 27 Offense Level by Criminal History Category 82
Table 28 Guideline Sentencing Range 83
Table 29 Reasons for Upward Departures 87
Table 30 Reasons for Downward Departures 87
Table 31 Guideline Departure Rate by Circuit and District 89
Table 32 Position of Sentence Relative to Guideline Range by Primary Offense Category 92
Table 33 Country of Citizenship of Sentenced Non-U.S. Citizens 96
Table 34 Demographic and Offense Information by Citizenship Status 97
Table 35 Citizenship Status of Defendant by Primary Offense Category 98
Table 36 Averages Imprisonment by Citizenship Status of Defendant for Select Offenses 99
Table 37 Guideline of Sentenced Drug Defendants by Drug Type 102
Table 38 Race of Drug Defendant by Drug Type 103
Table 39 Gender of Drug Defendant by Drug Type 104
Table 40 Citizenship of Drug Defendant by Drug Type 104
Table 41 Criminal History Category of Drug Defendant by Drug Type 106
Table 42 Mode of Conviction of Drug Defendant by Drug Type 107
Table 43 Weapon Involvement of Drug Defendant by Drug Type 107
Table 44 Role Adjustment of Drug Defendant by Drug Type 108
Table 45 Acceptance of Responsibility of Drug Defendant by Drug Type 108
Table 46 Departure Status of Drug Defendants by Drug Type 109
Table 47 Distribution of Sentenced Organizational Defendants by Primary Offense Category 126
Table 48 Organizations Sentenced Under Chapter Eight: Culpability Factors 127
Table 49 Fines Imposed by Primary Offense Category on Sentenced Organizations 128
Table 50 Restitution Imposed by Primary Offense Category on Sentenced Organizations 128
Table 51 Fines Imposed by Volume of Commerce on Sentenced Organizations Under the Antitrust Guideline 129
Table 52 Type of Appeal by Circuit and District 133
Table 53 Sentencing Appeals Case Disposition by Circuit and District 137
Table 54 Guideline Involved in Issues Appealed by Defendants 140
Table 55 Guideline Involved in Issues Appealed by the Government 141
Table 56 Sentencing Issues Appealed for Select Guidelines 143
Table 57 Select Offense and Offender Characteristics for Appeals Defendants 145
Table 58 Average Length of Imprisonment for Appeals Defendant by Primary Offense Category 147

United States Sentencing Commission