There will be a lot of focus on the U.S. Sentencing Guidelnes between now and October 4 when the Supreme Court hears oral argument in two cases, Booker and FanFan. The Guidelines are in jeopardy following last term's decision in Blakely v. U.S.

The Wall Street Journal has an article today on one aspect of the guidelines that doesn't get enough attention: That a defendant can be sentenced by a Judge for conduct for which he was acquitted by a jury. All it takes is for a jury to find the defendant guilty at trial of one of the charges against him. The prosecutor can then ask the judge at sentencing to increase the sentence based upon conduct the jury rejected. How can this happen? Because the standard of proof at trial is proof beyond a reasonable doubt, while the standard before a judge at sentencing is the lesser one of "preponderance of the evidence."

TalkLeft's contributing blogger TChris is counsel for the defendant in the Booker case. He's been on hiatus from blogging while preparing the case for its big day before the Supreme Court. Here's his brief (pdf).

Our favorite source for all things Blakely online is Law Professor Doug Berman's blog, Sentencing Law and Policy.