Ch. 12 - Sentencing

Judges must decide what the appropriate WHAT?* is for offenders

Punishment

• Some offenses are serious & merit imprisonment & others are minor & deserve fines or other alternatives to incarceration

Judges attempt to tailor sentences to fit both?

crimes & the offenders

• They also attempt to fashion sentences that are designed to meet one or more of the goals of sentencing 

• In doing so, they consider the seriousness of the crime & the offender's criminal history as well as other offender & case characteristics that they believe are relevant

What are Retributive justifications for punishment?

• An offender is punished b/c he or she has done something wrong

• Looks backward at what was done

What is Utilitarian justification for punishment?

• To prevent future crime through deterrence, incapacitation, or rehabilitation

• Looks forward to future criminal behavior

Why punish? Retribution: the “just desserts” theory of punishment

• Justice demands that those who violate the law need to be punished

  • Simply put, a retributivist believes those who commit crimes should be punished b/c they deserve it

Justice restores the WHAT? to a civilized society by penalizing the offender

Equilibrium 

• We all agree to abide by the law as a society. When someone violates this agreement by committing a crime, the punishment remedies the unfair advantage acquired in the criminal act

One big justification of utilitarianism is?

Deterrence:

• Use of punishment to dissuade people from offending or reoffending

What is Specific deterrence?

• use of punishment to dissuade offenders from reoffending 

  • An offender who has been legally punished ceases offending b/c of a fear of future punishment

What is General deterrence?

• use of punishment to dissuade prospective offenders

  • Potential offenders learn of the consequences of criminal involvement (for actual offenders) & decide not to risk subjecting themselves to such punishment

What is incapacitation?

• locking up or physically restraining the offender to prevent them from committing crimes in the future

  • Incompacitation is reserved for dangerous or high-risk offenders

What is Rehabilitation?

• preventing crime by reforming or treating offenders

  • The techniques used to reform or rehabilitate offenders include such things as individual or group counseling, education, job training, substance abuse treatment, & behavior modification programs

How much to punish?

• In the process of deciding how much to punish, conflicting aspirations compete

  • If we asked a panel of judges, each of whom represented a different philosophy of punishment, to determine the appropriate punishment for a particular offense, the resulting sentences probably would vary widely

What is retribution?

• should be proportionate to the seriousness of the crime

  • “Eye for an eye” & “punishment should fit the crime”

What is deterrence punishing in the punishment form for a crime?

should be sufficient to outweigh the benefits of the crime

What is incapacitation punishing in the punishment form for a crime

• should be proportionate to the risk posed by the offender

  • Dangerous, high-risk offenders should be punished more severely than nonviolent, low-risk offenders

What is rehabilitation doing in the punishment form for a crime?

• should be based on the offender's need & potential for reform

The death penalty:

• Capital punishment is authorized by 27 states, federal gov't, U.S. Military

  • In the past 5 yrs, Washington abolished the use of the death penalty for crimes committed in that state

• Death penalty today is imposed almost exclusively for first-degree murder

explain: Guided discretion statutes: death penalty allowed only in aggravating circumstances

• First, a "guilt phase” – is defendant guilty or not guilty of murder?

• Second, a “penalty phase” – based upon aggravating or mitigating factors, should the defendant be sentenced to death?

• This process for death penalty cases is called a bifurcated trial

• The jury makes the decision in both phases of a bifurcated death penalty trial. This is one of the rare occurrences where the jury decides the defendant's punishment/sentence

Life & Life without Parole Sentences

• People serving life sentences?

• People serving life sentences increased by 500% from 1984 (34k) to 2016 (162k) in the state & federal prison systems

• The meaning of life sentence has changed 

Life sentencing vs. life sentence w/o possibility of parole

• For much of the 20th century, a “life” sentence typically meant serving 10 to 15yrs

• Sentences did not usually carry mandatory minimums & people were released on parole earlier than in recent yrs

• Now, some states have limited the types of crime that are eligible for parole or how many yrs a defendant must serve before eligible for parole (mandatory minimum sentence)

• Life sentences, even w/ the possibility of parole, often result in the defendant's death in prison

• Part of the increase in life sentences may be attributed to states trending away from the use of the death penalty

A jail or prison sentence is an option in some misdemeanors as well as felonies meaning?

• “Jail” sentences are typically served at the local jail for periods of less than one year

• “Prison” sentences are typically served in state or federal penitentiaries & are reserved for more serious crimes & high-risk offenders

Mandatory minimum sentence: minimum jail sentence is imposed on an offender meaning?

Ex: a mandatory prison term of 3yrs for using a firearm in the commission of a violent felony. The defendant is sentenced for the offense, plus the 3yr mandatory minimum

Indeterminate sentence: a minimum & maximum sentence for each offense meaning?

• Ex: a prison sentence of 3 to 6 yrs. 3 is the minimum that must be served, 6 is the maximum that can be served

  • Eligible for parole after the 3yr minimum is served

Determinate sentence: a specific # of yrs to be served in prison, chosen from a range for that offense… give an example

• Ex: 5yrs in prison

What is Probation?

• Sanction involving community supervision of an offender by a probation officer

  • The judge can put any # of conditions on the offender during the probation period

    • Attend meetings w/ probation officer, drug testing, mental health & substance abuse treatment, enrollment in educational programs, etc.

• The court retains control over the offender while the offender is on probation; if the offender violates the conditions of probation, the judge can modify the conditions or revoke the offender's probation & sentence that person to jail or prison

• Probation remains the most widely used alternative to incarceration

What are Intermediate sanctions?

• A sanction more severe than probation but less severe than a prison sentence

Name possible types of intermediate sanctions:

• Boot camp: program that targets young, nonviolent felony offenders

• House arrest: offenders ordered to remain at home for a designated period of time

• Electronic monitoring: designed to track offenders’ location

• Community service: offenders perform a certain # of hours of unpaid work

• Monetary penalties: fines, fees, & restitution to the victim

• Many sentences include a combination of a few options. For ex: a judge could sentence a felony defendant to 30 days local incarceration (jail), plus 2 years probation after the jail sentence, plus the payment of court costs & financial repayment to the victim for a theft offense