Richard Blumenthal Questions Judicial Nominee About Her Approach To Sentencing After GOP Attacks

3 months ago

At today's Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) questioned Julia M. Lipez, nominee to be United States Circuit Judge for the First Circuit, about approach to sentencing.

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Transcript

00:00Sentencing, Judge Lipez, could you talk a little bit about your philosophy of sentencing?

00:08Because I think it's important for the committee to hear more fully how you approach what I

00:13think is one of the most important responsibilities of a judge.

00:18Thank you, Senator, for that question.

00:22I practice extensively as a federal prosecutor, so I'm quite familiar with the federal sentencing

00:27system.

00:28The state of Maine sentencing system that I now work under is quite different.

00:32We don't have sentencing guidelines.

00:34Instead, in the state of Maine, we have a three-part methodology that we are required

00:40by statute to follow.

00:42In every case, I look carefully at the factual record, I make factual findings as dictated

00:49by the evidence before me, and then I follow the three-part sentencing methodology.

00:55The third part of that methodology requires the court to consider whether to suspend a

01:00portion of the sentence so that the defendant can be on probation conditions.

01:04The Maine system does not have supervised release for most crimes the way that the federal

01:08system does, and so the only way to place an offender on probation conditions after

01:14release and to supervise them in the community is to suspend a portion of the sentence, and

01:18that happens, in my experience, in the majority of Maine cases.

01:23In every case, I listen carefully to the parties, to the victims, if it's a crime involving

01:28victims.

01:29In many cases, I have imposed sentences that the state has asked for, and I view each case

01:38on its own and impose a sentence that is dictated by the evidence and the statutory factors.

01:45I think that's important.

01:46You try to individualize a sentence.

01:48I've been a prosecutor, U.S. Attorney, and Attorney General, and sentencing has, in part,

01:59justifiably, a punishment aspect.

02:04Society demands that there be some suffering on the part of people who commit a crime.

02:11That's in part why we deprive them of their freedom, but it also is supposed to have some

02:18corrective effect on the individual.

02:21It used to be called rehabilitative, and unfortunately, all too often, our prisons fail to provide

02:30either job skills or education or health care in many different ways.

02:37As you look at an individual, is the factual background that you consider partly whether

02:47that person is going to commit another crime or become a productive member of society?

02:53Senator, that's something I'm required to consider under the statutory factors set forth

02:59by Maine law, the individual history and characteristics of the defendant, including any criminal history,

03:06any past failures on probation, and the prospects for rehabilitation, and then, of course, the

03:12nature and circumstances of the offense.

03:14In each case, I consider all of those factors as I'm required to by Maine law.

03:19Thank you.

03:20I really appreciate that very thoughtful answer to a question that I think becomes embroiled

03:26in the politics of the moment, but really faces this committee in the way that we make

03:31laws and faces judges literally every day in courtrooms all around the country, in state

03:38courts as well as federal courts.

03:42I really appreciate both of your service to our country.

03:47Part of your service is appearing before this committee, not pleasant, not fair.

03:56Welcome to our world.

03:59And I want to thank you and commend you for being here to participate in the very constructive

04:06and thoughtful way that you have done.

04:10I would invite either of you, feel no pressure to do so, to add any comments that perhaps

04:19you haven't been able to conclude because you've been interrupted.

04:23If you want to say something in addition to explain, provide further answers, please use

04:29the balance of my time to do so.

04:36Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

04:38Thank you, Senator Blumenthal.

04:40Senator Kennedy.

04:42Thank you.

04:43Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Richard Blumenthal Questions Judicial Nominee About Her Approach To Sentencing After GOP Attacks

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