Court Opinion

ID: 9690893
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-24 19:50:20.213884+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:19:06.100231
License: Public Domain

ROSENBLATT, District Judge,
dissenting.
The Sentencing Guidelines are unconstitutional. Promulgated by the United States Sentencing Commission, an independent commission in the judicial branch, and pursuant to The Sentencing Reform Act of 1984, they violate the separation of powers doctrine. Also, in the enactment, Congress has improperly delegated its lawmaking powers to the Commission.
The Commission cannot constitutionally establish Sentencing Guidelines because it is an agency of the judicial branch and its work product is essentially the product of the judicial branch through its three Article III members. It is this considerable input which encourages reconciliation of the Guidelines to the constitution; to make fabric of whole cloth. The rationale for the separation of powers violation is well articulated in United States vs. Arnold, 678 F.Supp. 1463 (S.D.Cal.1988), and is adopted by this court.
The Sentencing Guidelines are unconstitutional because of excessive delegation to the Sentencing Commission. Whereas certain reasonable delegations of power are not forbidden, when, as here, the delegation is to the judicial branch based on some notion of shared responsibility the result of which locks in place existing sentencing practices and which serves as a substantive enactment by the one branch not answerable to the public through the imprimatur of the three Article III judges, the non-delegation doctrine must be reanalyzed.
The reasons for this conclusion are well stated by the defendants in the cases consolidated herein for the challenge motions and need not be repeated for the purpose of this dissent.
STAY
The adoption of the Guidelines has altered the sentencing process as it affects every one concerned, probation officers, other court personnel, counsel, the court, and most directly, the defendants. It is important as a matter of judicial efficiency and uniformity that the considerable efforts required are not impaired by differing requirements or parallel sentencings. Therefore, this Court in United States v. Carranza, CR 88-35 PHX PGR, if appropriate, and in all subsequent cases, will stay any order of invalidity. The Court will sentence under the Sentencing Guidelines and Temporary General Order # 166, *1420United States District Court for the District of Arizona, pending appellate review.