October Term 2006 · Docket 06-5754
Must appellate courts presume district court sentences are reasonable?
The dispute centers on whether appellate courts must treat district court sentences as reasonable by default.
Verified source milestones
- — An official oral-argument transcript was verified.
The arguments, in order
This case may have been argued more than once. Each entry below uses that session's official transcript. Later arguments do not erase earlier ones.
Argument 1 ·
What happened at the argument
The government advocate argued the appellate court correctly applied a presumption of reasonableness.
the side that brought the case advocate argued judges are no longer bound by the specific guideline range.
Justice Breyer questioned whether a judge must provide more than a simple guideline citation.
Justice Scalia asked how to reconcile conflicting statutory language regarding sentencing reasons.
Read the official transcript for this argument · Official argument details
Sources used for this argument breakdown
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 24, lines 47-21 — Transcript, file page 24, lines 47-21
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 3, lines 19-19 — Transcript, file page 3, lines 19-19
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 3, lines 7-17 — Transcript, file page 3, lines 7-17
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 32, lines 3-7 — Transcript, file page 32, lines 3-7
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 4, lines 21-33 — Transcript, file page 4, lines 21-33
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 4, lines 51-21 — Transcript, file page 4, lines 51-21
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 5, lines 47-51 — Transcript, file page 5, lines 47-51
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 6, lines 29-31 — Transcript, file page 6, lines 29-31
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 6, lines 39-41 — Transcript, file page 6, lines 39-41
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 6, lines 45-47 — Transcript, file page 6, lines 45-47
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 6, lines 5-19 — Transcript, file page 6, lines 5-19
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 7, lines 15-21 — Transcript, file page 7, lines 15-21
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 7, lines 35-41 — Transcript, file page 7, lines 35-41
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 7, lines 45-7 — Transcript, file page 7, lines 45-7
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 8, lines 21-31 — Transcript, file page 8, lines 21-31
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 8, lines 51-19 — Transcript, file page 8, lines 51-19
A citizen's guide to the whole case
What this case is about
The case tests the standard of review for federal sentencing decisions.
Official sources for this section
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 24, lines 47-21 — Transcript, file page 24, lines 47-21
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 3, lines 19-19 — Transcript, file page 3, lines 19-19
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 32, lines 3-7 — Transcript, file page 32, lines 3-7
How the case got here
The Supreme Court heard oral argument in this case on February 20, 2007.
Official sources for this section
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 3, lines 7-17 — Transcript, file page 3, lines 7-17
What each side wants
The government wants the appellate court to presume the sentence is reasonable.
the side that brought the case wants the appellate court to review the sentence without a presumption.
Official sources for this section
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 24, lines 47-21 — Transcript, file page 24, lines 47-21
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 3, lines 19-19 — Transcript, file page 3, lines 19-19
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 32, lines 3-7 — Transcript, file page 32, lines 3-7
What each side says
The government argues the appellate court applied the correct presumption of reasonableness.
the side that brought the case argues judges are no longer tied to the specific sentencing range.
Official sources for this section
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 24, lines 47-21 — Transcript, file page 24, lines 47-21
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 3, lines 19-19 — Transcript, file page 3, lines 19-19
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 32, lines 3-7 — Transcript, file page 32, lines 3-7
What the justices asked
Justice Kennedy asked if the statute requires the court to consider specific factors.
Justice Breyer asked if simply citing the guideline sentence is sufficient reasoning.
Official sources for this section
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 4, lines 21-33 — Transcript, file page 4, lines 21-33
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 4, lines 51-21 — Transcript, file page 4, lines 51-21
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 5, lines 47-51 — Transcript, file page 5, lines 47-51
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 6, lines 29-31 — Transcript, file page 6, lines 29-31
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 6, lines 39-41 — Transcript, file page 6, lines 39-41
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 6, lines 45-47 — Transcript, file page 6, lines 45-47
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 6, lines 5-19 — Transcript, file page 6, lines 5-19
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 7, lines 15-21 — Transcript, file page 7, lines 15-21
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 7, lines 35-41 — Transcript, file page 7, lines 35-41
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 7, lines 45-7 — Transcript, file page 7, lines 45-7
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 8, lines 21-31 — Transcript, file page 8, lines 21-31
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 8, lines 51-19 — Transcript, file page 8, lines 51-19
Why it matters
This standard determines how much deference appellate courts give to district judges.
Official sources for this section
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 24, lines 47-21 — Transcript, file page 24, lines 47-21
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 3, lines 19-19 — Transcript, file page 3, lines 19-19
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 32, lines 3-7 — Transcript, file page 32, lines 3-7
What happens next
This article currently covers the argument record. Use the official docket link for later case activity.
Official sources for this section
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 3, lines 7-17 — Transcript, file page 3, lines 7-17
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 4, lines 21-33 — Transcript, file page 4, lines 21-33
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 4, lines 51-21 — Transcript, file page 4, lines 51-21
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 5, lines 47-51 — Transcript, file page 5, lines 47-51
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 6, lines 29-31 — Transcript, file page 6, lines 29-31
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 6, lines 39-41 — Transcript, file page 6, lines 39-41
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 6, lines 45-47 — Transcript, file page 6, lines 45-47
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 6, lines 5-19 — Transcript, file page 6, lines 5-19
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 7, lines 15-21 — Transcript, file page 7, lines 15-21
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 7, lines 35-41 — Transcript, file page 7, lines 35-41
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 7, lines 45-7 — Transcript, file page 7, lines 45-7
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 8, lines 21-31 — Transcript, file page 8, lines 21-31
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 8, lines 51-19 — Transcript, file page 8, lines 51-19
Official Court provenance
Official docket and case history · Official Supreme Court oral-argument detail page
Title and summary sources
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 24, lines 47-21 — Transcript, file page 24, lines 47-21
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 3, lines 19-19 — Transcript, file page 3, lines 19-19
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 32, lines 3-7 — Transcript, file page 32, lines 3-7
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 24, lines 47-21 — Transcript, file page 24, lines 47-21
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 3, lines 19-19 — Transcript, file page 3, lines 19-19
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 32, lines 3-7 — Transcript, file page 32, lines 3-7
Revision history
- Revision 1 · Official Transcript ·
Correction: Rewritten to the concise citizen-facing editorial standard.
- Revision 2 · Official Transcript ·
Correction: Migrated to the dated official Court activity contract without model use.