1. Short title
This Act may be cited as the “Prohibiting Punishment of Acquitted Conduct Act of 2021”.
Prohibiting Punishment of Acquitted Conduct Act of 2021
A BILL
To amend section 3661 of title 18, United States Code, to prohibit the consideration of acquitted conduct at sentencing.
2. Acquitted conduct at sentencing
Use of information for sentencing—
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.
Applicability— The amendment made by paragraph (1) shall apply only to a judgment entered on or after the date of enactment of this Act.
Definitions— Section 3673 of title 18, United States Code, is amended—
in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking “As” and inserting the following:
“(a) As”
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 adjudicated not guilty after trial in a Federal, State, or Tribal court; 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.”