Commonwealth v. Williams

Feb 03, 2014

OUTCOME: Mandatory Minimum Sentence held unconstituitonal, Commonwealth's appeal to the Superior Court was denied. This case is instrumental in reversing the legislature's practice of limiting judicial discretion at the time of sentencing.

Mr. Williams was charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance, which could have triggered a mandatory minimum sentence of 2 years incarceration. Defense counsel argued that the mandatory minimum ... sentence was unconstitutional in light of the United States Supreme Court case US v. Alleyne.