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Sortable table: Judges’ leniency varies greatly from district to district

March 23, 2014 5:00AM ET

Explore a sortable table showing retroactive sentence reductions across the United States.

Topics:
U.S.
Crime
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In the wake of the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010, thousands of inmates serving crack sentences petitioned for reconsideration. Such a petition, seeking a retroactive sentence reduction, typically must go to an inmate’s original sentencing judge, and federal prosecutors can argue for or against it. But each of the United States’ 94 federal districts is different, with unique prosecutorial and judicial cultures. That means that crack offenders in one district might have a far better chance of winning a sentence reduction than offenders with similar cases in another district. The table below shows the result of the more than 12,500 petitions made through January 2014.

Judicial District Total Number Number granted Percent granted Number denied Percent denied
Alabama Middle 66 66 100 0 0
Alabama Northern 142 21 14.8 121 85.2
Alabama Southern 316 156 49.4 160 50.6
Alaska 32 32 100 0 0
Arkansas Eastern 99 61 61.6 38 38.4
Arkansas Western 45 18 40 27 60
California Central 44 33 75 11 25
California Eastern 26 26 100 0 0
California Northern 39 37 94.9 2 5.1
California Southern 4 4 100 0 0
Colorado 48 40 83.3 8 16.7
Connecticut 46 46 100 0 0
Delaware 9 9 100 0 0
District of Columbia 73 66 90.4 7 9.6
Florida Middle 235 229 97.4 6 2.6
Florida Northern 321 104 32.4 217 67.6
Florida Southern 124 74 59.7 50 40.3
Georgia Middle 111 111 100 0 0
Georgia Northern 33 32 97 1 3
Georgia Southern 407 130 31.9 277 68.1
Hawaii 2 0 0 2 100
Illinois Central 194 84 43.3 110 56.7
Illinois Northern 133 131 98.5 2 1.5
Illinois Southern 164 108 65.9 56 34.1
Indiana Northern 99 97 98 2 2
Indiana Southern 129 47 36.4 82 63.6
Iowa Northern 287 80 27.9 207 72.1
Iowa Southern 207 59 28.5 148 71.5
Kansas 106 106 100 0 0
Kentucky Eastern 51 17 33.3 34 66.7
Kentucky Western 223 62 27.8 161 72.2
Louisiana Eastern 95 95 100 0 0
Louisiana Middle 120 41 34.2 79 65.8
Louisiana Western 262 101 38.5 161 61.5
Maine 54 19 35.2 35 64.8
Maryland 157 132 84.1 25 15.9
Massachusetts 79 43 54.4 36 45.6
Michigan Eastern 105 96 91.4 9 8.6
Michigan Western 211 78 37 133 63
Minnesota 150 72 48 78 52
Mississippi Northern 80 67 83.8 13 16.3
Mississippi Southern 104 104 100 0 0
Missouri Eastern 272 153 56.3 119 43.8
Missouri Western 91 90 98.9 1 1.1
Nebraska 167 115 68.9 52 31.1
Nevada 8 8 100 0 0
New Hampshire 45 15 33.3 30 66.7
New Jersey 100 58 58 42 42
New Mexico 14 12 85.7 2 14.3
New York Eastern 102 33 32.4 69 67.6
New York Northern 83 81 97.6 2 2.4
New York Southern 49 30 61.2 19 38.8
New York Western 102 90 88.2 12 11.8
North Carolina Eastern 342 158 46.2 184 53.8
North Carolina Middle 333 123 36.9 210 63.1
North Carolina Western 671 218 32.5 453 67.5
Ohio Northern 140 91 65 49 35
Ohio Southern 149 113 75.8 39 26.2
Oklahoma Eastern 13 13 100 0 0
Oklahoma Northern 42 28 66.7 14 33.3
Oklahoma Western 115 48 41.7 67 58.3
Oregon 6 6 100 0 0
Pennsylvania Eastern 83 81 97.6 2 2.4
Pennsylvania Middle 191 145 75.9 46 24.1
Pennsylvania Western 93 52 55.9 41 44.1
Puerto Rico 341 186 54.5 155 45.5
Rhode Island 24 24 100 0 0
South Carolina 415 265 63.9 150 36.1
South Dakota 8 8 100 0 0
Tennessee Eastern 145 103 71 42 29
Tennessee Middle 27 27 100 0 0
Tennessee Western 83 80 96.4 3 3.6
Texas Eastern 243 196 80.7 47 19.3
Texas Northern 194 114 58.8 80 41.2
Texas Southern 141 80 56.7 61 43.3
Texas Western 400 270 67.5 130 32.5
Utah 7 7 100 0 0
Vermont 5 5 100 0 0
Virginia Eastern 862 585 67.9 277 32.1
Virginia Western 478 251 52.5 227 47.5
Washington Eastern 5 3 60 2 40
Washington Western 26 26 100 0 0
West Virginia Northern 240 239 99.6 1 0.4
West Virginia Southern 128 104 81.3 24 18.8
Wisconsin Eastern 57 57 100 0 0
Wisconsin Western 85 85 100 0 0
Wyoming 6 6 100 0 0
Sources: U.S. Sentencing Commission Preliminary Crack Retroactivity Data Report Fair Sentencing Act, January 2014.