2004: Chief justice scolds Congress
Opposition continued against the judicial provisions of the PROTECT Act. In the 2004 annual report on the state of the federal judiciary, Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist criticized the act for targeting individual judges' sentences for scrutiny and Congress for failing to consult the judiciary before passing the act. Provisions of the act "could appear to be an unwarranted and ill-considered effort to intimidate individual judges in the performance of their judicial duties," he said. Linda Greenhouse, Supreme Court correspondent for the New York Times, noted that Rehnquist has long been concerned about guarding judicial independence and was trying to "raise the issue's public visibility and bring it more forcefully than before to the attention of Washington policymakers." 52
Commission steps back on "caps"
The U.S. Sentencing Commission, reacting to pressure from the Department of Justice and Congress, repealed the mitigating role cap it had unanimously recommended in May 2002 and replaced it with a series of graduated downward adjustments tied to base-offense level. FAMM joined many groups in opposing the repeal. 53
ABA opposes mandatory sentences
The American Bar Association (ABA) added its voice in opposition to mandatory minimum sentencing. Responding to a challenge from Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy in 2003, it established the Kennedy Commission to review U.S. criminal sentencing policy. The commission's report, adopted with minor changes by the ABA House of Delegates in August 2004, called for a series of actions, including repealing of mandatory minimum sentences and letting courts consider characteristics of the offense and offender that may warrant a sentence increase or decrease. The ABA now lobbies lawmakers for changes and works to raise public awareness about the need for sentencing reform. 54