Sentenced Financial Manager Marcus Schrenker, who attempted to fake his own death by parachuting out of his plane after charges were brought against him for securities fraud, to four years in federal prison in 2009.[11]
On January 31, 2011, Vinson ruled that the individual mandate provision of the PPACA violated the Constitution by regulating economic inactivity, and as the mandate is not severable the entire statute was ruled unconstitutional. Vinson allowed the law to stand while it was being appealed by the Obama administration.[13][14] Vinson later issued a stay to his January ruling, allowing implementation to proceed while its constitutionality was weighed.[15][16]
Sentencing philosophy
Vinson is noted for being a hardline judge who refused to depart from maximum sentences in spite of their severity, even though he agreed his very own sentences were far too high. In his own words: "The punishment is supposed to fit the crime, but when a legislative body says this is going to be the sentence no matter what other factors there are, that's draconian in every sense of the word. Mandatory sentences breed injustice."[17]
Personal life and death
In 2009, Vinson was installed as president of the American Camellia Society.[18]
Vinson died from prostate cancer on April 1, 2023, aged 83.[19]
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John Shiffman, Kristina Cooke (2013-06-21). "The judges who preside over America's secret court". Reuters. Archived from the original on 2013-06-23. Retrieved 2013-07-01. Twelve of the 14 judges who have served this year on the most secret court in America are Republicans and half are former prosecutors.
