"Charles A. Shaw" grew up in a segregated African-American neighborhood in St. Louis. His tight-knit community supported him, and he was inspired to become first a teacher and then a lawyer. From there, he worked his way up to federal prosecutor and state judge before President Bill Clinton appointed him to the federal bench.

Shaw quickly became dismayed by the inequality and severity of mandatory U.S. sentencing guidelines and how they affected young African-American men. Prosecutors opposed him at every turn as he sought to impose fair sentences, but he never wavered in seeking to...

"Charles A. Shaw" grew up in a segregated African-American neighborhood in St. Louis. His tight-knit community supported him, and he was inspired to become first a teacher and then a lawyer. From there, he worked his way up to federal prosecutor and state judge before President Bill Clinton appointed him to the federal bench.

Shaw quickly became dismayed by the inequality and severity of mandatory U.S. sentencing guidelines and how they affected young African-American men. Prosecutors opposed him at every turn as he sought to impose fair sentences, but he never wavered in seeking to...