Federal Defenders of San Diego Inc. v. United States Sentencing Commission

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER

SPORKIN, District Judge.

Plaintiffs in this case, the Federal Defenders of San Diego and the Federal Pub- lie Defender for the Middle District of Tennessee, two organizations of criminal defense lawyers, have brought suit to challenge the constitutionality of the sentencing guidelines issued by defendant United States Sentencing Commission. 1 Although there exists a great deal of controversy as to exactly what these new guidelines do— and what they do not do — there can be no doubt that they effect a sweeping, even revolutionary change in the method in which our…