The Supreme Court in Koon held that the sentencing judge is in the best position to evaluate whether a departure is warranted, and any departure should be reversed on appeal only under very limited circumstances where, for example, the judge abused discretion or made a mistake of law. Some say that Koon is good for the system because it supports the authority of judges to fashion an appropriate sentence where there are unforseen or compelling circumstances. Others have suggested that the Congress should pass legislation that would effectively overrule Koon . In my opinion the Koon decision has helped win over many judges to embrace the guidelines system and sentence within it because they know that under Koon they are also able to react to unique or extraordinary circumstances not foreseen by the system. The guideline system is well developed and sound, but it cannot possibly anticipate all circumstances that will arise.
Today there is generally a high rate of compliance with the guidelines.