American Indians and Sentencing Guidelines Topic of Hearing

On June 19, 2001, the U.S. Sentencing Commission (U.S.S.C.) held a public hearing in Rapid City, South Dakota, in response to a March 2000 Report of the South Dakota Advisory Committee to the United States Commission on Civil Rights. The Advisory Committee’s Report recommended that an assessment of the impact of the Sentencing Guidelines on American Indians in South Dakota be undertaken. The recommendation was based on the perception in South Dakota that American Indians, by virtue of being subject to federal prosecution and sentencing rather than state prosecution and sentencing, receive harsher sentences under the federal guidelines than they would under similar state sentences. The purpose of the hearing was to provide the Commission with an opportunity to hear from various witnesses who have first-hand experience with the process of criminal investigation, prosecution, and sentencing in South Dakota and the federal sentencing guidelines.

Testimony was presented by four panels of witnesses including tribal leaders and elders, federal prosecutors, defense attorneys, academics, and private attorneys. Chief Judge Lawrence L. Piersol (D. S.D.) moderated one panel that presented testimony to Commission members. Several common themes were presented by the witnesses, including examples of disparate sentencing, the need for federal judges to have more discretion in sentencing, the notion that tribal courts should have jurisdiction over some felonies, and the idea that first-time offenders should receive suspended or deferred sentences in conjunction with drug/alcohol treatment. Other witnesses presented testimony emphasizing the importance of recognizing victims and their rights, many of whom are American Indians.

As a result of the hearing, U.S.S.C. staff crafted training programs for defense attorneys in South Dakota and travelled there in October to present three training sessions. The U.S.S.C. also published in the Federal Register a request for public comment on the idea of establishing an advisory or liaison group to the U.S.S.C on American Indian issues.