Tags: Case, Legal Case, Supreme Court Of The United States Case, Unit Of Work.
Blakely v. Washington 542 U.S. 296 (2004) held that in the context of mandatory sentencing guidelines under state law the Sixth Amendment right to a jury trial prohibited judges from enhancing criminal sentences based on facts other than those decided by the jury or admitted by the defendant. The landmark nature of the case (for good or ill) was alluded to by Justice Sandra Day O’Connor who described the Court’s decision as a ‘Number 10 earthquake.’