# *Pharms v. United States*

Sentencing defendants based on conduct for which they were acquitted undermines the critical role that juries play in the American justice system in three ways.

April 17, 2026 • Legal Briefs 

By Sam Rutzick, [Dan Greenberg](https://www.cato.org/people/dan-greenberg), and [Matthew Cavedon](https://www.cato.org/people/matthew-cavedon) 

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Keith Pharms was arrested and charged on five counts involving a gunfight between, among others, Mr. Pharms and a police officer. The jury was specifically asked whether Mr. Pharms fired a weapon. The jury said no.

Despite this finding, the district judge sentenced Mr. Pharms as if he had used a firearm, lengthening the sentence he could receive by at least four and a half years. This miscarriage of justice is part of a common practice called acquitted conduct sentencing.

Sentencing defendants based on conduct for which they were acquitted undermines the critical role that juries play in the American justice system in three ways. First, it undermines the historic discretion that our Anglo-American legal tradition gives to juries. Second, it prevents juries from serving their role as a check on potential government misconduct. Finally, it diminishes the legitimacy that involving the community in the criminal justice system provides.

The Cato Institute filed a brief urging the Supreme Court to take up this case, and grant this petition for certiorari, in order to end the practice of acquitted conduct sentencing.

[![Pharms v. United States - pub cover](/sites/cato.org/files/styles/serial_cover_phone/public/2026-04/US%20v.%20Pharms_Final-pubcover.jpg?itok=U5ZZpTcM)](https://www.cato.org/sites/cato.org/files/2026-04/US%20v.%20Pharms_Final.pdf) 

### Download This Legal Brief

##### *Pharms v. United States* 

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##### About the Authors 

##### Sam Rutzick 

Pacific Legal Foundation

[![Dan Greenberg cropped](/sites/cato.org/files/styles/author_picture/public/2025-03/Dan%20Greenberg%20cropped.png?itok=Ze7HzJaI)](/people/dan-greenberg) 

##### [Dan Greenberg](/people/dan-greenberg)

Senior Legal Fellow

[![Matthew Cavedon-cropped](/sites/cato.org/files/styles/author_picture/public/2025-11/Matthew%20Cavedon-cropped.jpg?itok=SqrUdWTd)](/people/matthew-cavedon) 

##### [Matthew Cavedon](/people/matthew-cavedon)

Director, Project on Criminal Justice, Cato Institute

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This work is licensed under a [Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/). 

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