H.R. 1621

Prohibiting Punishment of Acquitted Conduct Act of 2021

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II

Calendar No. 315

117th CONGRESS

2d Session

H. R. 1621

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

March 29, 2022

Received; read twice and placed on the calendar

AN ACT

To amend section 3661 of title 18, United States Code, to prohibit the consideration of acquitted conduct at sentencing.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Prohibiting Punishment of Acquitted Conduct Act of 2021.

2.

Acquitted conduct at sentencing

(a)

Use of information for sentencing

(1)

Amendment

Section 3661 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by inserting , except that a court of the United States shall not consider, except for purposes of mitigating a sentence, acquitted conduct under this section before the period at the end.

(2)

Applicability

The amendment made by paragraph (1) shall apply only to a judgment entered on or after the date of enactment of this Act.

(b)

Definitions

Section 3673 of title 18, United States Code, is amended—

(1)

in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking As and inserting the following:

(a)

As

; and

(2)

by adding at the end the following:

(b)

As used in this chapter, the term acquitted conduct means—

(1)

an act—

(A)

for which a person was criminally charged and with regard to which—

(i)

that person was adjudicated not guilty after trial in a Federal, State, or Tribal court; or

(ii)

any favorable disposition to the person in any prior charge was made, regardless of whether the disposition was pretrial, at trial, or post trial; or

(B)

in the case of a juvenile, that was charged and for which the juvenile was found not responsible after a juvenile adjudication hearing; or

(2)

any act underlying a criminal charge or juvenile information dismissed—

(A)

in a Federal court upon a motion for acquittal under rule 29 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure; or

(B)

in a State or Tribal court upon a motion for acquittal or an analogous motion under the applicable State or Tribal rule of criminal procedure.

.

3.

Determination of budgetary effects

The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of complying with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, shall be determined by reference to the latest statement titled Budgetary Effects of PAYGO Legislation for this Act, submitted for printing in the Congressional Record by the Chairman of the House Budget Committee, provided that such statement has been submitted prior to the vote on passage.

Passed the House of Representatives March 28, 2022.

Cheryl L. Johnson,

Clerk.

March 29, 2022

Received; read twice and placed on the calendar