This submission addresses the proposed amendments to (1) the Sentencing Commission’s policies regarding supervised release and (2) §2D1.1 On all other issues in the proposed amendments not addressed in this letter, NACDL joins in the comments filed by the Federal Defenders.

The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) is pleased to submit our comments on the proposed amendment to Rule 801 of the Federal Rules of Evidence. NACDL enthusiastically supports this proposal.

NACDL is pleased to submit our comments on the proposed amendments to Rule 29 of the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure and to Appeals Form 4. Overall, the theme of our comments is that the proposals appear to over-look the particular characteristics of federal criminal and related appeals, and would impose unwarranted burdens on many amici and on the judiciary itself in the great majority of appeals where the concerns that animate the proposals do not arise.

NACDL submits this comment in response the Bureau of Prisons’ Proposed rule that would change the regulations regarding the Inmate Financial Responsibility Program (IFRP).  … We thank the Bureau for taking seriously the comments made regarding this initial proposal. Nevertheless, we are concerned that the new rule regarding the IFRP does not comply with the requirements or goals of the First Step Act, signed into law by President Trump in 2018.

This submission addresses the proposed amendments to the career offender guideline, firearms-related guidelines, and guideline simplification. On all other issues in the proposed amendment cycle not addressed in this letter, NACDL joins in the comments filed by the Federal Defenders.

NACDL applauds the PCLOB for its premiere report on the telephone records program conducted under Section 215 of the PATRIOT Act and the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC). NACDL recognizes that the 702 surveillance program remains subject to more classification authorities than the 215 program, and understands that the PCLOB‘s report on the 702 program may be more limited in its public analysis than the 215 report. However, NACDL encourages the PCLOB, to the maximum extent consistent with national security, to make its report public, with limited redactions.

I write to you today to urge you to grant clemency to Leonard Peltier, an 80-year-old member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa and boarding school survivor who has spent nearly five decades in federal prison. His case has become a symbol of hope and resilience in the face of systemic injustices. Indeed, Mr. Peltier is an icon of the American Indian Movement who has devoted his life to fighting for the liberation of Indigenous Peoples.

We write to you with a united voice and call on you to use your Executive power and grant commutations to everyone currently facing the death penalty at the federal level.

Attached is the testimony of Clare Garvie, Fourth Amendment Center Training and Resource Counsel, for the U.S. Commission on Human Rights' hearing on Civil Rights Implications of the Federal Use of Facial Recognition Technology. Her testimony highlights how the use of facial recognition technology in the criminal legal system intersects with the Commission’s mandate to inform civil rights policy, enhance enforcement of federal civil rights laws, and investigate discrimination in the administration of justice. 

NACDL welcomes the opportunity to comment on the Drug Enforcement Agency’s proposed rule on the status of marijuana under the Controlled Substances Act. NACDL urges the DEA to reconsider its proposed rule and issue a new rule to deschedule marijuana. Rescheduling marijuana to Schedule III will not end federal marijuana arrests, even for possession and use, it will not release anyone from prison, and it will not expunge previous marijuana arrests from individuals’ criminal records. NACDL contends that rescheduling marijuana is simply not enough, and marijuana should be federally descheduled.

NACDL, with its diverse membership of 10,000 spanning state, federal, and military practice, wishes to express its views on preferred Commission priorities. We concur with other advocates and stakeholders that current sentences are excessively long, and certain sentencing factors disproportionately affect racial minorities within the criminal legal system. Whatever issues the Commission determines to prioritize, these flaws should be foremost in considering potential amendments.

NACDL respectfully submits the following comments on whether recently promulgated amendments should be included in the Guidelines Manual as changes that may be applied retroactively to previously sentenced defendants. These comments address Amendment 1 (relating to acquitted conduct). NACDL also supports retroactivity for Parts A and B of Amendment 3 and Part D of Amendment 5 and adopts the comments of the Federal Defenders on those amendments.

NACDL is pleased to submit our comments with respect to the proposed changes to Federal Rule of Evidence 609(a)(1). … Our members have substantial experience with the challenges created by Rule 609 and have submitted amicus briefs before the Oregon Supreme Court and Supreme Court of the State of Washington related to the state counterparts of Rule 609’s impact on the people in each jurisdiction. In line with our dedication to advancing the proper, efficient, and just administration of justice, we would like to offer the following comments on the proposed change to Rule 609(a)(1).

NACDL’s top line recommendation on data-driven policing tools is that police departments must not utilize data-driven policing technologies because they are ineffective; lack scientific validity; create, replicate and exacerbate “self-perpetuating cycles of bias”; hyper-criminalize individuals, families, and communities of color; and divert resources and funds from communities that should be allocated towards social services and community-led public safety initiatives.

This comment from the Fourth Amendment Center addresses the National Institute of Standards and Technology's report "Digital Investigation Techniques: A Scientific Foundation Review."