As part of a broader effort to reform federal sentencing laws, Congress created the Sentencing Commission to prepare guidelines for federal judges to use in criminal cases. The purposes of the sentencing guidelines – which consisted of ranges of sentences for each federal crime – included fairness and consistency in sentencing as well as the imposition of sentences that reflected the seriousness of the crime and would deter other criminal activity.

See also:

U.S. Sentencing Commission: Members

Cases that Shaped the Federal Courts: Mistretta v. United States (1989)