zlacker

>>tafda+(OP)
"Could be sentenced to" or "faces" means literally nothing.

https://www.popehat.com/2013/02/05/crime-whale-sushi-sentenc...

>>tptace+w6
“Faces up to…” means exactly what it says, that is “Faces a sentence that cannot exceed…”

Now, it doesn’t (in general) mean “Is likely to receive, if convicted”, which some people tend to assume, but it also doesn’t mean nothing. And given the fact that upward departure is allowed from the federal sentencing guidelines, but not from the statutory maximums for the offenses charged, it is literally all you can tell with certainty from the charges themselves.

>>dragon+f7
Is the maximum sentence particularly useful information? How does this fact aid my understanding of the severity of what he's done?

>>teduna+7a
> Is the maximum sentence particularly useful information?

Opinions will differ on this highly subjective question.

> How does this fact aid my understanding of the severity of what he’s done?

It aids your understanding of the potential consequences, not the severity of what he has done.

>>dragon+Ea
My prior understanding of the consequences was that he may or may not go to prison for an amount of time, and not a whole lot has changed. I guess I now know he won't go to prison for 40 years, but that's not exactly condensing the probability cloud.