Criminal Justice (Sentencing)

James T. Woods Act This bill expands the federal framework for combating the online exploitation of children. Among its provisions, the bill establishes new criminal offenses, expands reporting requirements, and facilitates the prosecution and sentencing of offenders.   TITLE I—SAFE ACT Sentencing Accountability For Exploitation Act or the SAFE Act This title directs the U.S. Sentencing Commission to review and amend its guidelines and policy statements applicable to federal criminal offenses involving the production, receipt, transport, shipment, or distribution of child sexual abuse material to (1) account for the actual and potential harm from the offense and changes since the last amendments with respect to the typical offense behavior and modern technologies, and (2) better reflect the spectrum of offender culpability. TITLE II—ENDING COERCION OF CHILDREN AND HARM ONLINE Ending Coercion of Children and Harm Online Act or the ECCHO Act This title establishes a federal framework to combat the online coercion of minors to commit harm. The title creates new criminal offenses, expands reporting of instances involving the online coercion of minors, facilitates the prosecution of offenders, and expands protections for minors who testify in court.   TITLE III—STOP SEXTORTION Stop Sextortion Act This title criminalizes threats to distribute child sexual abuse material to intimidate, coerce, extort, or cause substantial emotional distress. This practice is commonly referred to as sextortion . The title also increases criminal penalties for related offenses that involve the use of child sexual abuse material to intimidate, coerce, extort, or cause substantial emotional distress.

The SAFE Act creates a new category of "fentanyl-related substances" that would automatically be controlled under Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act based on specific chemical modifications to fentanyl. This affects anyone involved in the production, distribution, or use of substances meeting this broad definition. The bill establishes a process for removing or rescheduling these substances if they're determined to have less potential for abuse than Schedule I substances, and allows courts to review past convictions involving substances that have since been removed from this category. It also creates new research procedures for Schedule I substances and requires a GAO report analyzing the law's implementation and impact within four years.

HR 6104, the Dark Web Interdiction Act of 2025, creates a new federal offense for knowingly distributing controlled substances via the dark web and establishes the Joint Criminal Opioid and Darknet Enforcement Task Force. The bill mandates a 2-level sentencing increase for such violations and directs the new task force - comprising agencies like the FBI, DEA, and Customs - to disrupt dark web drug marketplaces through coordinated investigations, forensic training, and international collaboration. It requires annual reports on the task force’s activities and a separate report on virtual currency use in drug trafficking. The law applies directly to law enforcement agencies and targets individuals operating or using dark web marketplaces for illicit drug sales, with a 5-year sunset provision.

S 34, the Justice for 9/11 Act, directly affects Khalid Shaikh Mohammad, Walid Muhammad Salih Mubarak Bin ‘Attash, and Mustafa Ahmed Adam al Hawsawi - three individuals detained at Guantanamo Bay for their alleged roles in the 9/11 attacks. The bill mandates that their plea agreements and judgments cannot block military trials under Chapter 47A of Title 10 for the 9/11 attacks, makes the death penalty available in such trials, and requires them to remain in solitary confinement at Guantanamo Bay under strict conditions. Specifically, it prohibits contact with foreign nationals, restricts psychological treatment to only what medical authorities at Guantanamo authorize, and bans their transfer to the continental U.S. or any other country. The law overrides prior legal barriers to ensure these individuals face trial under military law with these specific confinement and sentencing provisions.

HR 2726, the Paula Bohovesky and Joan D’Alessandro Act, amends federal sentencing law to increase mandatory minimum prison time for certain sex crimes against children. It directly affects individuals convicted of sexual offenses where the victim was under 18 years old. The key provision adds a requirement that if the victim is a minor and the crime was a sexual offense, the mandatory minimum sentence becomes 14 years (previously applicable only to other cases). This change applies to federal prosecutions under Title 18, U.S. Code, Section 3559.

HR 350, the "Prosecutors Need to Prosecute Act," requires district attorneys in jurisdictions with 380,000 or more residents that receive federal Byrne grant funds to submit annual reports to the Attorney General. The reports must detail how many cases involving serious crimes - like murder, robbery, aggravated assault, and gun offenses - they referred for prosecution, declined, or resolved via plea deals, including data on repeat offenders and bail decisions. The Attorney General will establish uniform reporting standards and share the collected data with Congress and the public via a website. This bill directly affects large prosecutor offices receiving federal crime-fighting funds, aiming to increase transparency in prosecution practices for specific violent and property crimes.

This bill extends existing federal reentry programs under the Second Chance Act through 2030, continuing funding for services supporting people returning to communities after incarceration. It specifically maintains grants for state/local reentry projects (including substance use treatment, housing, and peer recovery services), family-based substance abuse treatment, prison/jail educational programs, career training, and community mentoring by nonprofits. The bill updates program timelines from their previous 2019-2023 authorization period to 2026-2030 without altering the core services provided. It directly affects state/local agencies, prisons, and nonprofit organizations administering these reentry programs. The legislation focuses solely on extending current funding mechanisms, not changing program requirements or creating new initiatives.

HR 4922, the DC Criminal Reforms to Immediately Make Everyone Safe Act of 2025 (DC CRIMES Act), modifies youth offender definitions and creates public transparency measures. It limits "youth offender" status to individuals 18 or younger (previously 24), removing provisions for 18-24 year olds in sentencing and facility planning. The bill requires the DC Attorney General to establish a public website publishing monthly juvenile crime statistics, including arrest data by age, race, sex, crime type, recidivism rates, and sentencing outcomes - without personally identifiable information. It also prohibits the DC Council from changing existing criminal sentencing laws. These provisions directly affect youth offenders aged 15-18 and DC government operations related to juvenile justice data.

HR 4697 would amend federal death penalty sentencing guidelines to add a new factor: if a defendant is an undocumented immigrant convicted of killing or attempting to kill a U.S. citizen. This directly affects non-citizens who entered the U.S. unlawfully and were convicted of murder or attempted murder against U.S. citizens. The key provision requires federal judges to consider the defendant's immigration status as an aggravating factor during sentencing hearings. The bill changes sentencing considerations for specific capital cases but does not alter the legal definitions of the underlying crimes.

S 718, "Eric’s Law," changes federal jury procedures for death penalty cases where juries cannot unanimously agree on sentencing. It requires a new jury to be impaneled if the original jury fails to reach a unanimous recommendation (death, life without parole, or a lesser sentence). If the new jury also fails to agree unanimously, the court must impose a non-death sentence authorized by law. This directly affects federal defendants facing capital punishment in cases where juries deadlock on sentencing recommendations. The bill ensures that sentencing deadlocks cannot result in a death penalty outcome.