No. 19-8055October Term 2019Decided Apr 20, 2020Updated Sep 3, 2026
Jones v. United States
The Supreme Court affirmed, leaving the lower-court result in place.
Case status
Decided · April 20, 2020
- Current stage
- Decided
- Latest event
- Decision released Apr 20, 2020
- What it's about
The Court declined to review a challenge to the use of acquitted conduct in federal sentencing. As a result, the lower court’s ruling and the defendant’s sentence remained in place; the Court did not decide the constitutional question on the merits.
Question presented
Whether the Fifth and Sixth Amendments prohibit a federal court from basing a criminal sentence on conduct for which the defendant was acquitted by a jury?
- Case path
United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit / Decision released Apr 20, 2020
- Area
Decided Supreme Court case
Decision
What the Court decided
The Supreme Court affirmed, leaving the lower-court result in place.
Impact
The result leaves the lower-court outcome in place. It matters to federal defendants whose sentences may be affected by conduct that did not lead to a jury conviction.
Not official Court text.
Briefing
What it's about
The Supreme Court affirmed the result in Jones v. United States. The case asked whether the Fifth and Sixth Amendments bar federal judges from basing a sentence on conduct a jury acquitted the defendant of committing.
Impact
The result leaves the lower-court outcome in place. It matters to federal defendants whose sentences may be affected by conduct that did not lead to a jury conviction.
What's next
The Court has completed its action in this case. The lower-court result remains in effect.
What did the Supreme Court rule in Jones v. United States?
The Court affirmed the result. The lower-court outcome remains in place.
Who is affected by the outcome in Jones v. United States?
Federal defendants whose sentences may consider conduct underlying charges on which juries acquitted them could be affected.
What happens next in Jones v. United States?
The Supreme Court's action is complete. The lower-court result continues to govern this case.
Timing
Decided April 20, 2020
The Court released its decision on April 20, 2020 without hearing oral argument.
Documents
Activity
Docket activity2
AI analysis generated: Case Briefing
Sep 3, 2026 | Generated
Brief added: Petition
Mar 18, 2020 | Court records
Related cases
Grounding
- Grounding
- Primary materials plus reporting.
- Note
- Best-effort analysis: this explainer relies on a mix of primary materials and trusted secondary sources. Official filings and opinions remain authoritative.
- Checked
- Sep 3, 2026
- Method
- Methodology