WATCH: Judge Jackson goes toe-to-toe with Ted Cruz as he grills her over sex offender cases
March 22, 2022
During her second day of testimony during hearings regarding her nomination to the Supreme Court, Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson took questions from Texas GOP Sen. Ted Cruz, who questioned her over accusations that she has been too lenient when sentencing child porn offenders.
During his questioning, Cruz presented a display showing sentences Brown handed to child porn offenders that were well below the prosecutors' recommendations.
"Every single case, one hundred percent of them, prosecutors came before you with child pornography cases, you sentenced the offenders to substantially below -- not just the guidelines, which were way higher -- but what the prosecutor asked for on average of these cases, 47.2 percent less," Cruz said, addressing Brown.
IN OTHER NEWS: People's Convoy organizer floats conducting 'citizens arrests' of DC Metro cops: report
Brown responded by making a "couple of observations" into how Cruz framed her record, one of which was, according to her, the fact that Cruz's chart "does not include all of the factors that Congress has told judges to consider, including the probation office's recommendation in these cases."
"...I take these cases very seriously as a mother, as someone who, as a judge, has to review the actual evidence in these cases, and based on Congress's requirement take into account not only the sentencing guidelines, not only the recommendations of the parties, but also things like the stories of the victims. Also things like the nature and circumstances of the offense and the history and characteristics of the defendant. Congress is the body that tells sentencing judges what they're supposed to look at, and Congress has said that a judge is not playing a numbers game. The judge is looking at all of these different factors and making a determination in every case based on a number of different considerations."
Watch the exchange below:
Leave a Comment