Federal Criminal Code Reform: Hidden Costs, Illusory Benefits

Anyone who has ventured into federal criminal law knows it is impossible to consult the federal criminal “code”—and I use the term advisedly— without becoming aware of peculiarities in its structure and content. Its well-documented shortcomings make proposals for federal criminal code reform sound like sweet reason, especially when the proponents speak with the authority that comes from years of working with and for the code reform effort. While it is hard to quarrel with their cogent calls for order and rationality in the federal law of crimes, the code reform debate often overlooks important realities of federal criminal law and criminal lawmaking that call into question whether code reform is practicable—or even advisable—at this time. The reforms recommended by the Brown Com-