Sentencing Models And Goals
V
various sentences.
Below are two scenarios.
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Order Paper NowWhat type of sentencing model would you use to sentence the offenders?
What actual sentence would you impose (type and time)?
What are the goals of sentencing that are associated with your decision?
Please discuss both scenarios.
Do not use current sentencing strategies to determine your sentence. I want all students to discuss what they believe is appropriate.
Scenario #1
Sam Smith was convicted of a robbery of Wells Fargo Bank on 125th Street in North Miami. During his robbery he possessed and displayed a firearm but did not fire the gun. He took $100,000.00 from the bank. No one was injured as a result of the robbery. He has accepted responsibility for his actions. He has no previous criminal history.
Scenario #2
Maria Hernandez was convicted of sexual exploitation of a minor. She basically prostituted her 11 year old niece of whom she was the legal guardian. Maria made her niece have sexual relations with hundreds of men in the Homestead area. Maria has not accepted responsibility and she does not believe that she did anything wrong. Maria does not have a criminal history.
Post/Reply Requirements
Make sure you use proper grammar and cite any resources utilized.
400 words minimum.
Do not plagiarize .
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Chapter 3 Sentencing: To Punish or to Reform?
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Learning Objectives
q Describe sentencing philosophy and identify the central purpose of criminal punishment
q Name the seven goals of criminal sentencing
q List and explain the sentencing options in general use today
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Learning Objectives
q Explain what a model of criminal sentencing is and identify models in use today
q Describe three-strikes laws and their impact on the correctional system
q Identify and explain some major issues related to fair sentencing
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Sentencing
q Imposition of a criminal sanction by a sentencing authority
q Sentence: Penalty a court imposes on a person convicted of a rime
q Social order: Smooth functioning of social institutions, positive relations among individual members of society, and orderly functioning of society as a whole
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Goals of Sentencing
q Revenge: Punishment as vengeance q Emotional response to real or imagined injury or insult
q Retribution: Retaliation against a criminal perpetrator q Belief that victims are entitled to reprisal
q Just deserts: Punishment deserved q Offenders are morally blameworthy and hence deserving of punishment
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Goals of Sentencing
q Deterrence: Discouragement or prevention of crimes through the fear of punishment q Specific deterrence: Deterrence of the individual being punished from additional crimes
q General deterrence: Use of the example of individual punishment to dissuade others from committing crimes
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Goals of Sentencing q Pleasure-pain principle: Idea that actions are motivated primarily by a desire to experience pleasure and avoid pain
q Incapacitation: Use of imprisonment or other means to reduce an offender’s capability to commit future offenses q Correctional econometrics: Study of the cost- effectiveness of correctional programs and related reductions in the rate of crime
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Goals of Sentencing
q Rehabilitation: Changing of criminal lifestyles into law-abiding ones q Involves correction of behavior through treatment, education, and training
q Reintegration: Process of making the offender a productive member of the community
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Goals of Sentencing
q Restoration: Process of returning to their previous condition all those involved in or affected by crime q Restorative justice: Systematic response to wrongdoing that emphasizes healing the wounds of victims, offenders, and communities caused or revealed by crime
q Victim-impact statement: Description of the suffering that a crime has caused victims
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Restorative Justice or Community Justice Programs Vic$m– offender media$on
Vic$m– offender
reconcilia$on
Vic$m-‐impact panels
Restora$ve jus$ce panels
Community repara$ve boards
Community-‐ based courts
Family group conferences
Circle sentencing
Court diversion programs
Peer media$on
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Sentencing Options
q Fines or other monetary sanctions q Probation q Alternative or intermediate sanctions q Incarceration q Death Penalty q Restitution: Payments made to the victim by a criminal offender, as compensation for the harm caused
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Types of Sentences
q Mandatory sentences: Sentences required by law under certain circumstances
q Presentence report (PSR): Provides a social and personal history and an evaluation of a defendant q Helps the court in determining a sentence q Prepared by a court’s probation department
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Types of Sentences
q Consecutive sentences: Sentences served one after the other q Imposed when a person is convicted of multiple offenses
q Concurrent sentences: Sentences served simultaneously
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Sentencing Models
q Model of criminal sentencing: Strategy or system for imposing criminal sanctions
q Flat sentences: Specify an amount of time to be served in custody and do not allow variation from the time specified
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Sentencing Models q Indeterminate sentence: Judge specifies a maximum and minimum length of time, and parole board determines the actual time of release q Good time: Amount of time prison authorities deduct from a sentence for good behavior or other reasons
q Determinate sentence: Sentence of a fixed term of incarceration q Can be reduced by good time
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Guideline Sentencing
q Voluntary/advisory sentencing guidelines q Not required by law q Based on past sentencing practices
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Guideline Sentencing
q Presumptive sentencing guidelines q Developed by a sentencing commission
q Sentencing commission: Create a schedule of sentences that reflect the gravity of the offenses committed and the prior record of the offender
q Guidelines are explicit, highly structured, and are mandatory
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Federal Sentencing Guidelines
q Take into account: q Defendant’s criminal history q Nature of the criminal conduct q Particular circumstances surrounding the offense
q Federal trial judges must follow the guidelines in their sentencing decisions
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Sentencing Enhancements
q Legislatively approved provisions that mandate longer prison terms: q For specific criminal offenses committed under certain circumstances
q Because of the offender’s past criminal record
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Federal Fair Sentencing Act q Reduced disparity in the amounts of powder cocaine and crack cocaine stated by the federal sentencing guidelines
q Eliminated mandatory minimum sentence for simple possession of crack cocaine
q First conviction for simple possession of crack cocaine is subjeimprisonmentct to a penalty of zero to one year of q Regardless of quantity
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Mandatory Minimum Sentencing
q Imposition of sentences required by statute for those: q Convicted of a particular crime q Convicted of a particular crime under special circumstances
q With a particular type of criminal history
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Mandatory Minimum Sentencing
q Three-strikes laws – Sentence enhancements used to: q Deter known and potentially violent offenders
q Incapacitate persistent criminals q Goals of mandatory sentencing are deterrence and incapacitation
q Has had an impact on crime and the operations of the criminal justice system
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Habitual Offender Statute
q Allows a person’s criminal history to be considered at sentencing
q Makes it possible for a person previously convicted of another specified offense to receive a more severe penalty than that for the current offense alone
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Three-Strikes Models: Differences in Washington and California Laws
Washington Law
• All three strikes must be for
felonies specifically listed in the
legisla$on
• No two-‐strikes provision
• Third-‐striker gets a life term in
prison without the possibility of
parole
California Law
• Only the first two convic$ons
need to be from the state’s list of
strikeable crimes
• Contains a two-‐strikes provision
• Third-‐striker has at least the
possibility of being released aKer
25 years
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Impact of Three-Strikes Laws on Local Courts and Jails
q High populations in jails due to: q Defendants facing enhanced penalties demanding jury trials
q Added time to process cases through trials q Courts’ reluctance to grant pretrial release to defendants facing long prison terms
q In recent times, counties have been effectively disposing of two- and three- strikes cases early in the process
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Impact of Three-Strikes Laws on Local Courts and Jails
q Increase costs q Funnel increasingly older persons into correctional institutions
q Solution – Realignment q Reduces state expenditures on correctional clients
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The Current Applicability of Three-Strikes Laws and Habitual Offender Statutes
q Budgetary shortfalls in the correctional systems have led some states to: q Use habitual offender statutes less frequently q Release repeat offenders early q Release nonviolent and relatively minor drug offenders
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Fair Sentencing
Sentencing prac$ces that incorporate fairness for both vic$ms and offenders
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Issues in Sentencing
• Severity of punishment should match the seriousness of the crime Propor$onality
• Similar crimes and offenders should be treated alike Equity
• Severity of punishment should take into account the offender’s prior criminal behavior
Social debt
• Requires offenders to serve a substan$al por$on of their sentence • Reduces the discrepancy between sentence imposed and actual $me spent in prison
Truth in sentencing
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Broader Issues
q Guideline-based determinate sentencing and restorative justice are inherently at odds with one another
q Solution q Seeking greater community involvement in the development of sentencing guidelines
q Creation of a hybrid system of restorative sentencing guidelines
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