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Supreme Court Ruling Could Send Freed Tennessee Man Back to Prison
The ruling affects about a dozen people nationwide and undercuts the compassionate-release path used to free Smith after 13 years in prison.
- A Supreme Court ruling in May threatens to send Patrick Dewayne Smith, a 47-year-old Tennessee man released in 2024, back to prison after serving 13 years of a life sentence.
- Smith benefited from rules adopted after Congress passed the First Step Act during President Donald Trump's first term, which reduced mandatory minimums for nonviolent drug crimes.
- The Supreme Court's 6-3 decision in May found sentencing disparities are not "extraordinary and compelling" reasons for early release, leaving Smith among about a dozen nationwide facing potential reincarceration.
- Shanna Rifkin, general counsel for FAMM, said those freed are "doing everything that they should be doing," yet face legal limbo without White House intervention.
- His father, James Smith, called the prospect of reincarceration "a bitter pill" for a nonviolent case, while the administration is actively reviewing developments, though clemency remains the only viable path.
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26 Articles
26 Articles
Associated Press News+25 Reposted by 25 other sources
A freed man faces life back in prison after a Supreme Court ruling on the First Step Act
Patrick Dewayne Smith is rebuilding his life after serving 13 years in prison on drug charges. But after a Supreme Court ruling in May he could be sent back for life.
·New York, United States
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Total News Sources26
Leaning Left12Leaning Right1Center12Last UpdatedBias Distribution48% Left, 48% Center
Bias Distribution
- 48% of the sources lean Left, 48% of the sources are Center
48% Center
L 48%
C 48%
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