100 to 1
The Anti-Drug Abuse Act sets the ratio.S2 ↗
01 / Verdict · where it standsUS · 2010 · STATUTE
Outcome · ratio cut to about 18 to 1
TO RESTORE FAIRNESS TO FEDERAL COCAINE SENTENCING.
Twenty-four years after the 1986 Act, Congress raised the crack quantities that trigger mandatory minimums from 5 to 28 grams and from 50 to 280 grams, narrowing the ratio to about 18 to 1, and ended the five-year minimum for simple possession. The change applied only to people sentenced after 2010. In 2018 the First Step Act's §404 let people sentenced earlier for a covered offense ask the court for a reduced sentence. In 2021 the Supreme Court held that relief reaches only crack offenses that carried a mandatory minimum.
About 18 to 1, not 1 to 1.S1 ↗ϟ THE STATUTE IN 20 SECONDS
1WHOPeople sentenced for crack, against the 1986 penalty structure.
2WHATCutting the 100-to-1 ratio and reaching those already sentenced.
3WHY IT MATTERSThe first time the drug-sentencing chain moved back toward the citizen.
THE FULL STATUTE FILE · the original write-up, checked
THE FIRST REVERSAL
The Fair Sentencing Act of 2010, approved on 3 August 2010, set out 'to restore fairness to Federal cocaine sentencing'. It raised the amount of crack that triggers a five-year mandatory minimum from 5 grams to 28, and a ten-year minimum from 50 grams to 280: a ratio of about 18 to 1, not 1 to 1. It also ended the five-year minimum for simple possession of crack that a 1988 law had created.
The changes did not apply to people sentenced before 2010. In 2018 the First Step Act's §404 made them retroactive: a court that imposed a sentence for a covered offense may impose a reduced sentence, on petition. In Terry v. United States (2021) the Supreme Court held that relief reaches only crack offenses that triggered a mandatory minimum.S1 ↗S2 ↗
FAIR SENTENCING ACT (2010) + FIRST STEP ACT §404 (2018)
♟ CITIZEN LOADOUT · PEOPLE SENTENCED FOR CRACK OFFENSES
⬟
§404 PETITION
Ask the sentencing court for a reduced sentence.
♜ INSTITUTION LOADOUT · THE FEDERAL SENTENCING STRUCTURE
♜
THE SCORED ACTOR
The federal sentencing structure and the power it used. The people on the citizen side are not scored.
WHAT THIS STATUTE DID NOT DO — About 18 to 1, not 1 to 1. Retroactive only on petition, from 2018. Terry (2021) excludes offenses without a minimum.
AFTERMATH LEDGER
WHY THIS SITS WHERE IT DOES
The first time the drug-sentencing chain moved back.
THE THROUGH-LINE
ADAA (1986) → Commission reports (2002) → Fair Sentencing Act (2010) → First Step §404 (2018) → Terry (2021).
79/100
CONSTITUTIONAL GRAVITY
All-time consequence · high. Pointed toward the citizen.
02 / Battle · powers and the battle logUS · 2010 · STATUTE
ScaleIVInstitutional
POWER LEVEL · STATUTE
65 /99
Power level from the earlier version of this page. Band 62–68 · ±3 uncertainty.
citizen-protective · settledBattle Power rates each side's position in this fight over the statute from five inputs. It doesn't judge the people involved.
◈ CITIZEN SIDE · PEOPLE SENTENCED FOR CRACK OFFENSES
§404 PETITION
Partial relief
P = 60/99 battle power
♜ INSTITUTION SIDE · THE FEDERAL SENTENCING STRUCTURE
18 TO 1 REMAINS
Disparity reduced, not removed
P = 64/99 battle power
SCORE DASHBOARD · THE NUMBERS AS BARS
CONGRESS · TITLE
The Act's stated purpose.S1 ↗
CONGRESS · §2
The ten-year threshold raised; five-year from 5 to 28 grams.S1 ↗
CONGRESS · §3
The 1988 possession minimum ended.S1 ↗
SUPREME COURT (THOMAS, J.), 2021
Who §404 reaches.S2 ↗
BATTLE LOG · THE DECISIVE MOVES
The Commission reports
The penalties exaggerate crack's harm.S3 ↗
Approved
The Fair Sentencing Act: 28 and 280 grams; possession minimum ended.S1 ↗
First Step Act §404
The 2010 changes made retroactive for covered offenses.S2 ↗
Terry v. United States
No §404 relief for offenses without a mandatory minimum.S2 ↗
THE STATUTE AND ITS CONSEQUENCES ARE RECORDED SEPARATELY. The statute is scored on its own text and record. Later uses are listed separately, with sources.
03 / Evidence · the record behind every claimUS · 2010 · STATUTE
THE RECORD IS OPEN TO INSPECTION.
The statute's text, its history and the records behind every line on this page.
S1 · Office of the Law Revision Counsel, U.S. House
S1 ↗Fair Sentencing Act of 2010, Pub. L. 111-220, 124 Stat. 2372
'To restore fairness to Federal cocaine sentencing.' §2: 50g → 280g and 5g → 28g. §3: eliminates the mandatory minimum for simple possession. Approved 3 Aug 2010.
S2 · Cornell LII · Supreme Court
S2 ↗Terry v. United States, 593 U.S. ___ (2021), No. 20-5904
Thomas, J., for the Court, 14 June 2021: the 2010 changes narrowed the ratio to about 18 to 1 and did not apply to those sentenced before 2010; First Step Act §404 (2018) made them retroactive for a 'covered offense'; a crack offender sentenced under §841(b)(1)(C), with no mandatory minimum, is not eligible.
S3 · U.S. Sentencing Commission
S3 ↗Report to the Congress: Cocaine and Federal Sentencing Policy (May 2002)
The Commission's findings against the 100-to-1 ratio.
No matching source. Try a holding name or case title.
PROVISIONS INDEX · WHAT THE STATUTE SAYS
Each entry opens the statute's own words, a plain reading and the limit of the provision.
COMMUNITY VAULT · PREPARE A FORMAL CHALLENGE
DISAGREE? MAKE THE OBJECTION PRECISE.
Your challenge saves on this device. Export it to send it in for review. Nothing is posted publicly.
04 / Lineage · where it came from, what it producedUS · 2010 · STATUTE
STATUTE · SELECT A PATH
WHERE THIS STATUTE SITS.
Crack quantities triggering federal mandatory minimums are 28 grams (five years) and 280 grams (ten years); people sentenced earlier for a covered offense may seek a reduction under First Step Act §404.
2010 · FAIR SENTENCING ACT (2010) + FIRST STEP ACT §404 (2018)
Crack quantities triggering federal mandatory minimums are 28 grams (five years) and 280 grams (ten years); people sentenced earlier for a covered offense may seek a reduction under First Step Act §404.
To restore fairness to Federal cocaine sentencing.S1 · Office of the Law Revision Counsel, U.S. House ↗
Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986
This Act cut its ratio.
S2 · Cornell LII · Supreme Court ↗Terry v. United States
Limited §404 relief.
S2 · Cornell LII · Supreme Court ↗LIMIT OF THE CONNECTION
Terry (2021) excludes offenses without a minimum.
▥ GOVERNMENT-ADVANTAGING DOCTRINE
18 to 1 remainsEvery crack sentence
Not every offender§404 petitions
Discretion to denyEvery petition
◈ CITIZEN DOCTRINE
§404 petitionA pre-2010 crack sentence with a mandatory minimum
Higher thresholdsNew crack prosecutions
No possession minimumPossession charges
WHAT THIS FEEDS ON THE MAP
Links to places on the map where a record shows this rule was applied. It links; it doesn't color the map.
05 / Battlefield · where it was foughtUS · 2010 · STATUTE
MAP RULE: A statute doesn't change any county's score on its own. Only sourced, reviewed local events move a county's Constitutional Compliance Score.
ENACTMENT · INSTITUTIONAL LOCATION
ENACTED · 2010-08-03U.S. CONGRESS
The federal sentencing structure and the power it used. The people on the citizen side are not scored.
HOW IT CONNECTS · DIAGRAM, NOT A MAP
ORIGINWASHINGTON, DC
⇢The Capitol; a federal sentencing statute
REACHNATIONAL
national — every federal crack sentence
WHERE THIS EVENT BELONGS
The statute was enacted in Washington, DC.
The scored institution: The federal sentencing structure.
WHAT CONNECTS TO YOUR U.S. MAP
Links to related places on the map.
On its own, it doesn't change any county's score.
MAP RECORD
| case_ref | case:fair-sentencing-act-2010 |
|---|---|
| Event type | statute |
| Location | Washington, DC |
| Scale | IV · Institutional · national |
| Direction | +1 · citizen-protective |
| Gravity · Current force | 79 · 85 |
| Method | civic3-gravity-1.0 |
06 / Battle Loot · what each side won and lostUS · 2010 · STATUTE
⚔ BATTLE LOOT · WHAT CHANGED HANDS
Who won each encounter, from the sources on this page.
| Encounter | What was at stake | Taken by | What changed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010-08-03 · U.S. Congress · Pub. L. 111-220, 124 Stat. 2372 (2010) | Did Congress reduce the crack-powder ratio? | SPLIT | ratio cut to about 18 to 1. S1 ↗ |
Split 1 · a count of results, not a score
07 / Method & History · every number, every changeUS · 2010 · STATUTE
EVERY NUMBER IS OPEN.
Gravity, current force and effect use the Civic³ method on the Equation page. Every input below shows its reason and source. Challenge any of them.
79.0
GRAVITY · RAW WEIGHTED TOTAL
The six components below, weighted and summed.
G = .25 Authority + .20 Reach + .20 Durability + .15 Progeny + .10 Cross-domain + .10 Implementation| Input | Score | Weight | Contribution | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Authority | 80 | 25% | 20.00 | An act of Congress.S1 ↗S2 ↗ |
| Reach | 85 | 20% | 17.00 | Every federal crack sentence.S1 ↗S2 ↗ |
| Durability | 85 | 20% | 17.00 | In force since 2010.S1 ↗S2 ↗ |
| Progeny | 70 | 15% | 10.50 | First Step §404; Terry (2021).S1 ↗S2 ↗ |
| Cross-domain | 60 | 10% | 6.00 | Sentencing and prisons.S1 ↗S2 ↗ |
| Implementation | 85 | 10% | 8.50 | Applied in new sentences and petitions.S1 ↗S2 ↗ |
| Total | 100% | 79.00 | Displayed as 79 |
CONSTITUTIONAL EFFECT
+67.1
E = Direction × Gravity × Confidence × Current Force
Toward the citizen: a smaller disparity and a path to relief; settled, though partial.
E = +1 × 79 × 1.0 × 85/100READ THE SIGN CAREFULLY — A negative effect means the statute's weight today favors institutions over citizens. It says nothing about the people involved.
CURRENT FORCE · WHAT IS STILL LIVE
In force.
retroactivity · limitedOn petition; Terry narrows it.S2 ↗
THE FULL SCORE STACK
| Field | This file | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Power level /99 | 65 · band 62–68 | From the earlier version (an editorial estimate). |
| Legal / Promise / Divergence | 72 / 48 / 24 | Remedy delivered versus constitutional promise. |
| Battle Power (citizen / institution) | 60 / 64 | Strength of each side's position, from the five inputs above. |
| Gravity | 79 | All-time constitutional consequence. |
| Current force | 85 | How much of that weight still governs today. |
| Constitutional Effect | +67.1 | Signed present consequence. |
Nine-axis profile · every input
Reach · 87Legacy value, carried from the earlier file.S1 ↗
Severity · 87Legacy value, carried from the earlier file.S1 ↗
Precedent · 70Legacy value, carried from the earlier file.S1 ↗
Resistance · 55Legacy value, carried from the earlier file.S1 ↗
Divergence (axis) · 50Radar input only. Not the Legal/Promise divergence above.
Asymmetry · 50Legacy value, carried from the earlier file.S1 ↗
Evidence · 85Legacy value, carried from the earlier file.S1 ↗
Contestation · 60Legacy value, carried from the earlier file.S1 ↗
Fog · 33Legacy value, carried from the earlier file.S1 ↗
AXIS PROVENANCE — The nine axes come from the earlier version and only drive the radar.
FROM THE EARLIER VERSION
Values from the earlier version.
| Field | Legacy file | This edition |
|---|---|---|
| Power level | 65 · band 62–68 | 65 (carried) |
| Legal / Truth | 72 / 48 | Shown as the Legal and Promise games. |
| Passage | 'voice vote in both chambers', 'authored by Senator Durbin' | held: no source read |
| EQUAL Act | 'passed the House' | held: no source read |
REVISION HISTORY
A RECORD THAT STAYS OPEN TO CHALLENGE.
Rebuilt on the case chassis as a statute or event file
The legacy page was rebuilt under STATUTE_EVENT_RECORD_0.1.
[QUALIFIED] Prose restored from the legacy page, checked
The old page's write-up is carried in, checked against the statute and Terry v. United States (2021). Held: votes, sponsors and the EQUAL Act's status.
OPEN RESEARCH ITEMS
Votes and sponsors of the 2010 Act.
The First Step Act's signing date and §404 text from the statute itself (here via Terry, 2021).
The EQUAL Act's status.
REVIEW THIS EDITION
Every number, quote and edge on this page can be challenged with a source.