Legal Tech Abolition: Using legal technology to free them all

Abstract

Since the 1960s, the American criminal justice system has grown exponentially. Much of this growth has been the result of so-called "tough-on-crime" approaches that have resulted in disproportionate incarceration rates for young men of color. There is a growing recognition of this phenomenon across the political spectrum and widespread appreciation for efforts to address these disparities. In 2023, the U.S. Sentencing Commission adopted what has come to be known as the 821 Criminal History Amendment, a means by which incarcerated individuals could petition their sentencing courts to reduce their sentence. The Commission's own research indicated that tens of thousands of individuals currently incarcerated in the federal prison system could qualify for reductions in their sentences by virtue of this new procedure. In this paper, we show how the Commission passed the aforementioned 821 amendment followed by empirical evidence to posit that, in the first year since its passage, the Amendment is not being utilized to its full extent. The authors surmise that the lack of legal guidance for incarcerated individuals is contributing to the failure of this population to take full advantage of this mechanism. To address this gap in assistance, the authors describe the general access-to-justice crisis affecting low-income communities across the United States and some efforts to address it through technology. Consistent with emerging trends, the authors also describe their creation of a tech-based tool that will enable those eligible to apply for a reduction in their sentence under the Criminal History Amendment.