--- title: Jeff Sessions Issues New Criminal Charging Policy description: Attorney General Jeff Sessions issued a new criminal charging and sentencing policy Friday, revoking Holder-era policies. canonical: https://time.com/4776955/jeff-sessions-criminal-sentencing-policy-crimes/ author: Tessa Berenson article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-05-12T12:15:26.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T04:53:35.466Z article:section: Politics og:title: Jeff Sessions Issues New Criminal Charging Policy og:description: Attorney General Jeff Sessions issued a new criminal charging and sentencing policy Friday, revoking Holder-era policies. og:url: https://time.com/4776955/jeff-sessions-criminal-sentencing-policy-crimes/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltad88354f621ba52b/6988c1158fd2ee82d735669a/gettyimages-661631366.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4256 og:image:height: 2394 og:image:alt: Jeff Sessions Addresses Law Enforcement In St. Louis About Combatting Crime og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Jeff Sessions Issues New Criminal Charging Policy twitter:description: Attorney General Jeff Sessions issued a new criminal charging and sentencing policy Friday, revoking Holder-era policies. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltad88354f621ba52b/6988c1158fd2ee82d735669a/gettyimages-661631366.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Jeff Sessions Issues New Criminal Charging and Sentencing Policy > Sponsored content. 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Brief is TIME's Washington newsletter, written by senior correspondent Philip Elliott. It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times a week. It reaches 85,000 subscribers with a 37.0% open rate as of August 2026. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters.  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson May 12, 2017 12:15 PM UTC  U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions addresses law enforcement members on March 31, 2017 in St. Louis, Missouri. U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions addresses law enforcement members on March 31, 2017 in St. Louis, Missouri. Michael B. Thomas—Getty Images  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson May 12, 2017 12:15 PM UTC Attorney General Jeff Sessions issued a new criminal charging and sentencing policy Friday, directing prosecutors to pursue the most serious, provable offenses against the defendants that carry the maximum penalties. Sessions’ [memorandum](https://www.justice.gov/opa/press-release/file/965896/download) says it is “a core principle that prosecutors should charge and pursue the most serious, readily provable offense. This policy affirms our responsibility to enforce the law, is moral and just, and produces consistency. This policy fully utilizes the tools Congress has given us. By definition, the most serious offenses are those that carry the most substantial guidelines sentence, including mandatory minimum sentences.” This new memo rescinds the policy put in place by former attorney general Eric H. Holder Jr., [the Washington _Post_ reports](https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/sessions-issues-sweeping-new-criminal-charging-policy/2017/05/11/4752bd42-3697-11e7-b373-418f6849a004%5Fstory.html?hpid=hp%5Frhp-top-table-main%5Fsessions-7a%3Ahomepage%2Fstory&utm%5Fterm=.57404dc257ff), who directed his prosecutors to avoid bringing drug charges that would carry longer mandatory minimum sentences against certain defendants. Sessions’ directive says there can be exceptions when a prosecutor’s “good judgment” determines so, but those exceptions need to be approved by a United States Attorney or Assistant Attorney General and laid out in writing. Overall, the policy fits into the larger framework of Sessions’ promise to crack down on drugs and President Trump’s calls to be tough on crime. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4776955/jeff-sessions-criminal-sentencing-policy-crimes/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4776955/jeff-sessions-criminal-sentencing-policy-crimes/"},"headline":"Jeff Sessions Issues New Criminal Charging and Sentencing Policy","datePublished":"2017-05-12T12:15:26.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T04:53:35.466Z","description":"'This policy affirms our responsibility to enforce the law, is moral and just, and produces consistency'","url":"https://time.com/4776955/jeff-sessions-criminal-sentencing-policy-crimes/","keywords":["Justice Department","justice","Jeff Sessions","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltad88354f621ba52b/6988c1158fd2ee82d735669a/gettyimages-661631366.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Tessa Berenson","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltad88354f621ba52b/6988c1158fd2ee82d735669a/gettyimages-661631366.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Jeff Sessions Addresses Law Enforcement In St. Louis About Combatting Crime","caption":"Jeff Sessions Addresses Law Enforcement In St. Louis About Combatting Crime","creditText":"Michael B. 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