Legal Procedure

Federal sentencing proceedings are typically much different than state court sentencing. Most federal jurisdictions follow a bifurcated system where a separate sentencing hearing is held before a U.S. District Judge following a guilty plea or conviction at trial.

A defendant who has been convicted and sentenced in a federal district court may take an appeal to one of the United States Courts of Appeals. An appeal taken directly after sentencing is typically referred to as a direct appeal.

Federal courts strongly favor finality for criminal convictions. Once a district court’s judgment is affirmed, it can become very difficult to challenge a conviction or sentence.

Once a sentence becomes final and all appeals are exhausted, the district court loses jurisdiction to reduce a federal defendant’s sentence except under limited circumstances.

Every federal defendant is eligible to seek clemency from the President of the United States. There are two types of clemency: a commutation of sentence and an executive pardon.