<p>Widener University Delaware Law School congratulates Professor <a href="ipl://20//WyIxMzIiXQ==">Leonard N. Sosnov</a>, who will receive the Philadelphia Bar Association Thurgood Marshall Award.</p>
<p>The award represents the highest honor given by the association&rsquo;s Criminal Justice Section. It recognizes long-term service by a legal professional who exemplifies the ideals of Justice Thurgood Marshall&rsquo;s career, including devoting time, energy and talent to improving standards of justice in Philadelphia and Pennsylvania courts. The recipient is someone who demonstrates great legal talent and devotion to a cause, and the award recognizes service above and beyond what is expected.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The association will present the honor to Sosnov at its annual awards ceremony Wednesday, Dec. 16 at the Crystal Tea Room in Philadelphia.</p>
<p>&ldquo;I am grateful to be recognized for my work on behalf of indigent defendants, and to receive an award named after the late, great Justice Marshall,&rdquo; Sosnov said.</p>
<p>Sosnov joined the Delaware Law School faculty in 1990 and he teaches and writes in the areas of criminal law, criminal procedure and evidence. He has extensive litigation experience, including briefing and arguing two cases before the U.S. Supreme Court. In addition to teaching, he has represented individuals on behalf of Centurion Ministries, a nonprofit organization dedicated to freeing innocent people sentenced to life imprisonment or death. His work has brought about the release of five individuals.</p>
<p>Sosnov earned his law degree at Harvard University Law School and went on to clerk in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. He also worked as a staff attorney at the Defender Association of Philadelphia from 1972 until he joined the law school faculty. Sosnov was chief of the association&rsquo;s Law Reform Unit.</p>
<p>He was among early challengers to mandatory minimum sentencing laws, arguing against them in front of the U.S. Supreme Court in 1986 &ndash; a case he lost by one vote. His position was vindicated in Pennsylvania earlier this year when he argued and won a Pennsylvania Supreme Court case, <em>Commonwealth v. Hopkins</em>. The court struck down Pennsylvania&rsquo;s mandatory penalties for drug dealing in a school zone, finding the law void in light of a 2013 U.S. Supreme Court decision that involved mandatory minimum sentencing. The ruling resulted in many mandatory minimum sentencing statutes being declared invalid, and it set the stage for a potential sea change in Pennsylvania sentencing practice.</p>
<p>Widener University is a metropolitan university that connects curricula to social issues through civic engagement. Dynamic teaching, active scholarship, personal attention, applied leadership, and experiential learning are key components of the Widener experience.&nbsp; Its Delaware Law School is the First State&rsquo;s only law school, providing juris doctor, legal graduate and paralegal degree programs with an emphasis on developing legal professionals who reflect the Delaware Way and its traditions of civility, integrity and mutual respect. The school offers signature programs in corporate and business law, environmental law, family health law and policy, and trial advocacy. Widener University is proud to be tobacco free. Visit <a href="{staticroot}">delawarelaw.widener.edu</a> for more information.</p>
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