How Much Of A Federal Felony Sentence Do You Actually Serve? Chris Combs and Andrew Russek, attorneys at the leading Combs Waterkotte criminal defense firm, discuss federal felony sentencing guidelines, points, and the complexities of federal cases.
Interview Transcript
Scott Michael Dunn: So the chart you’re talking about kind of describes how much of a federal felony sentence that you actually serve? Is that what we’re getting into? And how do you determine that?
Andrew Russek: There’s a book that’s quite thick called your “Sentencing Guidelines,” and there’s a matrix.
So you’re gonna start with a crime itself, depending on how you’re charged or what you’re convicted of, it’s gonna give you points. Then you add on points for various factors, like if a gun was involved, it can be two points.
If there were threats of violence in conspiracy cases, it’s– there’s an argument of how high on the totem pole you are– if you’re low, you can see some point deductions there. If you’re high up on the totem pole, or the government is trying to allege you’re high up, you can get extra points there. And the difference between two points on here or there– I mean, you could start adding on. 10, 15, 20 months, after a while.
Scott Michael Dunn: Oh, wow.
Andrew Russek: Then, once you get that number, you’re cross-referenced with your criminal history. That’s a whole other fight because an Oklahoma drug conviction may give you this many points, where a drug conviction with a certain amount of time in Missouri– that’s all things you need an attorney to fight for you, because you want to be lower on that matrix, because that gives the range that the judge will sentence you between, for the most part.
Chris Combs: There’s a lot of criminal defense firms, it just will not touch fed cases for this reason. Because it’s–
Scott Michael Dunn: Complicated.
Chris Combs: Yes, exactly. They’re very complex. They’re extremely time-consuming. And you can’t just dabble in federal criminal defense law. You either do it or you don’t.
If you’re facing federal charges and need an expert criminal defense lawyer, contact Combs Waterkotte today at (314) 900-HELP or reach out online for a free, confidential case review. We will fight for your rights and freedom.
