Rutherford v. United States · ¶14

Obviously, Rutherford and Carter—not to mention the many other similarly situated prisoners—would like the benefit of the Act's amendment to § 924(c). As a rule, however, changes to sentencing statutes apply only to offenses committed after the statute's effective date. See Hewitt, 606 U. S., at 424. The Act departs from this rule in a very limited respect: Its more lenient penalties apply to offenses committed before the statute's enactment “if a sentence for the offense has not been imposed as of such date of enactment.” § 403(b), 132 Stat. 5222. But for defendants sentenced before the Act, the general rule of nonretroactivity remains in place. See Hewitt, 606 U. S., at 427.

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