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I. INTRODUCTION ..............................................................1106
II. FEDERAL SENTENCING AND THE IMPACT OF THE FAIR SENTENCING ACT ..............................................................1 109
III. HOW THE FSA CHANGES THE PRIOR STATUTE .............................11 12
IV. HISTORY AND CONGRESSIONAL BASES FOR CHANGING THE RATIO ..........................................................1113
A. History of the Cocaine Ratio and the Sentencing Commission 's New Discoveries .............................1114
B. Congressional Bases for Changing the Ratio .............................1116
V. RETROACTIVE APPLICATION OF THE NEW COCAINE RATIO IN THE SENTENCING GUIDELINES ...............................................1 1 19
VI. CONGRESSIONAL INTENT FOR RETROACTIVITY OF THE FSA ................................................................................1124
VII. CONGRESS SHOULD AMEND THE FSA APPLY RETROACTIVELY IF COURTS HOLD THAT IT IS NOT RETROACTIVE ..........................................................1135
VIII. CONCLUSION ..........................................................1136
APPENDDIX A ..........................................................1137
There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, hut there must never be a time when we fail to protest.
I. Introduction
Hamedah Hasan is a young unwed mother who left a physically abusive relationship, in which her gang member boyfriend beat and threatened to kill her, only to get "caught up in her cousin's crack cocaine conspiracy."2 She had no criminal record, never engaged in violence, and served only as an errand-girl for her cousin. Nevertheless, she was initially sentenced to life in prison largely based on mandatory minimum sentences for crack cocaine.4 Although Hamedah' s sentence has been reduced to only twenty-seven years in prison,5 her sentencing judges continued to fight for a further reduction in her sentence. District Judge Richard G. Kopf publicly urged President George W. Bush to commute Hamedah's sentence in 20 10.6 Judge Kopf stated that he was "firmly of the view that [Hamedah] doesn't need to be in prison any longer."7 If Hamedah had been found guilty of a powder cocaine offense and sentenced at the low-end of the sentencing guideline range, her original sentence would have only been fourteen years, rather than life imprisonment.8
Another example of the difference in treatment between crack cocaine and powder cocaine offenses is the case of former major league baseball player Willie Mays Aikens. Aikens was arrested and charged with a crack cocaine offense and initially sentenced to twenty years in federal prison.9 However, after a change to the sentencing guidelines was made retroactive in 2008, Aikens was released after serving twelve-and-a-half years.10 If Aikens had been convicted of a powder cocaine...