CJ 350: Sentencing

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138 Terms

1
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Define sentencing

The stage of the criminal justice process where, following conviction, a defendant is given a sanction for committing his/her offenses.

2
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What sanctions were regularly used?

  1. Fines (cannot be excessive)
  2. Being placed on probation
  3. Giving an intermediate sanction (between probation and incarceration)
  4. Incarceration
  5. Death penalty
3
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What is the first element of punishment?

It must involve pain or other consequences normally considered unpleasant.

4
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What is the second element of punishment?

It must be enacted for an offense against legal rules.

5
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What is the third element of punishment?

It must be imposed on an actual or supposed offender for his/her offense.

6
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What is the fourth element of punishment?

It must be intentionally administered by human beings other than the offender.

7
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What is the fifth element of punishment?

It must be imposed and administered by an authority constituted by a legal system against which the offense was committed.

8
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What are the four different sentencing philosophies?

  1. Justice/retribution
  2. Incapacitation
  3. Deterrence
  4. Treatment/rehabilitation
9
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What are the two forms of deterrence?

Specific and general.

10
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What is specific deterrence?

Operates under the notion that when you punish someone, they will be deterred from further criminal activity.

11
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What is general deterrence?

When you punish someone, the larger society is deterred from committing crimes.

12
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In colonial America, how were many cases handled?

Summary proceedings administered by judges.

13
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In colonial America, how could defendants have a trial by jury?

Defendants had to pay for it; this was the earliest form of class bias.

14
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Who were brutal punishments reserved for?

Servants and lesser men.

15
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Who provided data on more than 5,000 cases that were prosecuted in NY from 1691 to 1776?

Greenburg (1976).

16
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What percent of involved persons were of English background, mostly males in the NY prosecutions?

75%.

17
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What was the 25% of involved people in NY colonial America?

The remaining were a variety of racial and ethnic backgrounds.

18
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Who were the most underrepresented in criminal cases during colonial NY?

Dutch and slaves.

19
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Were there statistics on sentencing trends in the 20th and 19th centuries?

No.

20
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What happened in terms of punishment before 1750 in colonial NY?

Most thefts resulted in whippings and few executions.

21
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What happened in terms of punishment after 1750 in colonial NY?

Whipping dropped, but branding and executions increased dramatically.

22
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What was the number of accused and percentage of the English?

3,889 and 73.4%.

23
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What was the number of accused and percentage of the Dutch?

693 and 13.1%.

24
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What was the number of accused and percentage of the Jewish?

44 and 0.8%.

25
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What was the number of accused and percentage of the other whites?

252 and 4.8%.

26
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What was the number of accused and percentage of slaves?

353 and 6.7%.

27
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What was the number of accused and percentage of free blacks?

35 and 0.7%.

28
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What was the number of accused and percentage of the Indians?

31 and 0.6%.

29
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What was the total number of accused in colonial NY?

5,297.

30
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True or false, there were no national statistics reported before the 1880 census?

True.

31
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Taken from the penitentiaries, the data in the first report revealed what percentage of offenders were reported to be under the one-year sentence?

99%.

32
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Taken from the penitentiaries, the data in the first report revealed what percentage of offenders had sentences listed over one year?

88%.

33
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In jails, how many inmates were under a sentence (percentage)?

55%.

34
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In jails, what percentage had sentences of one year or longer?

8%.

35
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For male whites, what was the average sentence?

3.66.

36
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For female whites, what was the average sentence?

1.12.

37
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For African American males, what was the average sentence?

5.01.

38
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For female African Americans, what was the average sentence?

2.80.

39
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For male natives, what was the average sentence?

3.79.

40
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For female natives, what was the average sentence?

1.51.

41
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For male Chinese, what was the average sentence?

6.58.

42
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For female Chinese, what was the average sentence?

2.54.

43
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Who had the longest average sentences of 6.58 years?

Chinese.

44
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Which female group had the shortest average of 2.8 years?

Black.

45
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Who was Hugh Davis, and what happened to him in 1630?

Hugh Davis was a white man living in colonial Virginia who was punished by the colonial court in 1630 for having sexual relations with a Black woman.

46
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What was the punishment Hugh Davis received?

He was ordered to be 'soundly whipped before an assembly of Negroes and others' as a public form of punishment and humiliation.

47
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What was the reason given for Hugh Davis' punishment?

The court stated that Davis had 'abused himself to the dishonor of God and shame of Christians, by defiling his body in lying with a Negro,' highlighting both religious and racial motives behind the punishment.

48
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Why is the Hugh Davis case historically significant?

It is one of the earliest recorded examples of a legal penalty for interracial relations in what would become the United States.

49
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What does the Hugh Davis case tell us about race and law in early colonial America?

It shows how race was being codified into law even in the early 17th century.

50
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Who was Robert Sweat, and what occurred in 1640?

Robert Sweat was a white settler in colonial Virginia who was brought before the General Court for fathering a child with an enslaved Black woman.

51
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What punishment did Robert Sweat receive?

The court ordered that Robert Sweat perform public penance for his offense.

52
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What punishment did the enslaved woman receive?

The enslaved woman was sentenced to be whipped at the whipping post.

53
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What is the historical significance of the Robert Sweat case?

This case is among the earliest recorded instances where interracial relations were legally penalized.

54
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Who was John Punch?

John Punch was an African man working as an indentured servant in colonial Virginia.

55
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What happened in the John Punch case in 1640?

John Punch attempted to escape his indentured servitude.

56
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What punishment did John Punch receive?

John Punch was sentenced to serve as a slave for life.

57
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What punishment did the two white men receive?

They received lighter sentences: additional years of indentured servitude.

58
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Why is the John Punch case historically significant?

The case is considered a legal turning point in American history.

59
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What impact did the John Punch case have on future laws and society?

The decision laid the groundwork for institutionalized slavery.

60
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Who was Emmanuel, and what was the context of his case?

Emmanuel was an African man serving as an indentured servant.

61
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What punishment did Emmanuel receive?

Received a severe punishment—he was whipped and branded.

62
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What punishment did the white servants receive?

They received lighter punishments compared to Emmanuel.

63
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Why is the Emmanuel case historically significant?

It illustrates the early legal codification of racial disparities.

64
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When was the largest number of homicides in US history?

1980s to 2000s.

65
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What year was federal sentencing guidelines created?

1984.

66
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What is Determinate Sentencing?

A sentencing structure where the offender is given a fixed term of imprisonment.

67
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What is indeterminate sentencing?

A sentencing structure where the offender is given a range of time.

68
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What is presumptive sentencing?

A sentencing model that sets a standard sentence for specific crimes.

69
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What type of sentencing is in line with the get tough approach?

Determinate sentencing.

70
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What is the first aspect of the presumptive sentencing approach?

A sentencing commission or committee makes the recommendations for the guidelines.

71
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What is the second aspect of the presumptive sentencing approach?

Taking into consideration the severity of the offense.

72
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What is the third aspect of the presumptive sentencing approach?

Judges who deviate from the specified sentence must justify their decision.

73
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True or false, there is a mandatory minimum in which the judge’s discretion is the minimum?

True.

74
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When were federal sentencing guidelines passed?

Mid 1980s.

75
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What range of years did the crime rate triple?

1961-1985.

76
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What range of years did the crime rate cut in half?

1991 to 2014.

77
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What range of years did the violent crime rate go up and the homicide rate went up by 20%?

2015 and 2016.

78
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What allows federal prosecutions to dismantle or disrupt criminal organization?

Mandatory minimums.

79
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What year was the US Sentencing Commission created?

1987.

80
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Why do innocent people often feel trapped during trial processes?

They often feel they must accept a plea deal to avoid harsh sentences.

81
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What is the incarceration problem related to pleas?

Almost 95% of cases plead out.

82
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What are the racial disparities of black men in 2019?

2,204.

83
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What are the racial disparities of Hispanic men in 2019?

979.

84
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What are the racial disparities of white men in 2019?

385.

85
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What are the racial disparities of the other category of men in 2019?

1,176.

86
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What was a major contributor in the late 1980s to the increase in punitive sentencing policies?

War on drugs.

87
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Who was established under the Anti-drug abuse act of 1988?

White House Office of National Drug Control Policy.

88
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What has provided evidence of loosening punitive ideology surrounding drugs?

The legalization of marijuana sales and use.

89
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More than how many adults have been convicted of a felony in state courts?

1.1 million adults.

90
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Of the 1.1 million adults, what percent were sentenced to jail?

28%.

91
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Of the 1.1 million adults, what percent were sentenced to prison?

41%.

92
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What is the percentage of inmates convicted of a felony in state courts?

70%.

93
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What race are most people convicted for felony offense?

White.

94
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Who overrepresented felony convictions in nearly every category in state courts?

Blacks.

95
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Who represented 2% of all felony convicted?

American Indian, Alaska Natives, Asian, and Pacific Islanders.

96
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In 2016, the US Sentencing Commission reported how many convictions for offenses at the federal level?

67,000.

97
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What percentage of the majority convictions in federal courts were involved in drugs, immigration, firearms, or fraud?

81%.

98
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What is the percent of drug offenses in federal?

31.6%.

99
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What is the percent of immigration offenses in federal?

29.6%.

100
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What was the majority of cases comprised of in federal?

Drugs and immigration offenses.