Criminal Justice & Due Process – Timeline of Key Acts

Federal criminal justice reform has focused on balancing law enforcement authority with constitutional protections for individuals. Below is a timeline of major acts that continue to shape modern due process and sentencing.

Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Act (CAFRA, 2000)

• Established procedural safeguards for property owners in civil forfeiture cases.
• Required the government to prove forfeiture cases by a preponderance of evidence.
• Created an “innocent owner” defense and hardship release provisions.

First Step Act (2018)

• Major bipartisan sentencing and prison reform law.
• Reduced mandatory minimums for certain drug crimes, expanded the “safety valve” exception.
• Made the Fair Sentencing Act (2010) retroactive, addressing crack/powder cocaine disparities.
• Expanded rehabilitation and early release opportunities for federal prisoners.

Why It Matters Today

These reforms:

Erlinger v. United States (2024)

1) Link to the Actual Opinion
Read the Supreme Court opinion (PDF)

2) Summary of the Opinion
Erlinger was convicted under the Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA), which imposes enhanced sentences for defendants with three prior convictions committed on “occasions different from one another.” The sentencing judge, not a jury, determined that Erlinger’s prior convictions were from separate occasions. The Supreme Court held this violated the Sixth Amendment: such facts must be found by a jury, unanimously, and proven beyond a reasonable doubt.