Psychiatric History as a Factor in Sentencing

[摘要] sentencingmitigationjudicial discretionculpabilityrisk assessmentCourts Must Consider Evidence of Psychiatric History in Sentencing, but Have Broad Discretion in Determining the Value of Such EvidenceIn United States v. Lopez-Delgado, 974 F.3d 1 (1st Cir. 2020), Humberto Lopez-Delgado challenged his sentence for possession of a machine gun, arguing that the U.S. District Court for Puerto Rico abused its discretion in deviating from the sentencing guidelines by, inter alia, failing to adequately consider his difficult childhood and mischaracterizing his mental health history. The First Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the sentence because, although the deviation from the guidelines was significant, it was defensible based on the lower court’s balancing of mitigating and aggravating factors, including the risk of danger to the community.

[学科分类] 儿科学

[关键词] sentencing;mitigation;judicial discretion;culpability;risk assessment