Supreme Court Ruling Limits Compassionate Release for Federal Prisoners, Threatening Reincarceration for Some

The U.S. Supreme Court, in its ruling in Rutherford v. United States, has restricted the ability of federal judges to consider certain changes in sentencing laws when reviewing compassionate release requests. This 6-3 decision, issued earlier this year but with current implications, invalidates a 2023 policy that allowed judges to consider sentencing disparities, potentially threatening the freedom of individuals like Patrick Dewayne Smith, who was released after serving 13 years of a life sentence for a nonviolent federal drug offense.