WASHINGTON, D.C. — Thousands of federal prisoners locked up for offenses involving crack cocaine will be eligible for early release after a vote Thursday by the U.S. Sentencing Commission. Congress passed a law last year substantially lowering recommended sentences for people convicted of crack cocaine crimes ...

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For years, a federal statute imposed a minimum penalty that was 100 times higher for offenses involving “cocaine base” than for powder cocaine offenses. Though that law has been changed to reduce the disparity, the U.S. Supreme Court is now considering ...

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The fight is not over for supporters of the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010. The legislation reduces the disparity between mandatory minimum sentences for federal crack cocaine and powder cocaine cases ...

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The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments Tuesday in a case that will determine just how much leeway federal trial courts have in reducing sentences for crack cocaine offenses below the levels set by the revised federal sentencing guidelines.

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The U.S. Senate this week approved a bill that would significantly cut the disparity between sentences for powder cocaine offenses and those involving crack cocaine.

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