IANAL but no, the US claim to minimalism is just branding. The largest jurisdiction like the Federal judiciary, for example, have the Federal Sentencing Guidel

IANAL but no, the US claim to minimalism is just branding. The largest jurisdiction like the Federal judiciary, for example, have the Federal Sentencing Guidelines which have a strict point system for criminal sentencing where judges have little discretion due to a Federal “tough on crime” wave. It really depends on the subfield of law and the vagueness of past legislation.