CJ101 - Punishment & Sentencing Notes

Learning Objectives

• List and describe the five philosophical reasons for sentencing criminals.
• Describe the options available to judges in sentencing and how laws limit those options.
• Analyze how various sentencing options do and do not fit the four reasons for sentencing.
• Argue for and against the use of capital punishment and describe how such arguments have led to differing uses by time period and location.

After Trial

• Pre-sentence investigative report.
• (Some states): Jury deliberation on sentencing.
• Judicial consideration.
• Sentencing guidelines in law.
• Aggravating and mitigating factors.
• Some circumstances: jury must determine.
• Report.
• Impact statements from victims.
• Philosophical positions.
• Analysis of similar cases.

Purposes of Punishment

• Retribution: Make offenders pay.
• Deterrence: Make offenders fear.
• Incapacitation: Make offenders inert.
• Rehabilitation: Make offenders non-offenders.
• Restitution: Make victims whole.

Sentencing Options

• Incarceration
  • House
  • Facility
  • House of Corrections
  • Minimum- to High-Security Prisons
  • With or without labor
• Fines
• Probation
• Community service
• Special circumstances
  • Indeterminate: “10-15 years”
  • Determinate: “12 years”
  • Affected by mandatory minimums

Punishments No Longer Used in the U.S.

• Gladiator combat
• Slow death/death by torture
• Corporal Punishment: Caning/flogging/whipping
• Amputation/Mutilation
• Exile
• Hard Labor/Slavery
• Public shaming by stocks/pillory

Burglary (Maine Law - §401)

• A person is guilty of burglary if:
  • A. The person enters or surreptitiously remains in a structure knowing that that person is not licensed or privileged to do so, with the intent to commit a crime therein. Violation of this paragraph is a Class C crime.
  • B. The person violates paragraph A and:
    • (1) The person is armed with a firearm, or knows that an accomplice is so armed. Violation of this subparagraph is a Class A crime.
    • (2) The person intentionally or recklessly inflicts or attempts to inflict bodily injury on anyone during the commission of the burglary or an attempt to commit the burglary or in immediate flight after the commission or attempt. Violation of this subparagraph is a Class B crime.
    • (3) The person is armed with a dangerous weapon other than a firearm or knows that an accomplice is so armed. Violation of this subparagraph is a Class B crime.
    • (4) The violation is against a structure that is a dwelling place. Violation of this subparagraph is a Class B crime.
    • (5) At the time of the burglary, the person has 2 or more prior convictions for any combination of the Maine Class A, B or C offenses listed in this subparagraph or for engaging in substantially similar conduct to that of the Maine offenses listed in this subparagraph in another jurisdiction. The Maine offenses are: theft; any violation of this section or section 651, 702 or 703; or attempts to commit any of these crimes. Section 9-A governs the use of prior convictions when determining a sentence. Violation of this subparagraph is a Class B crime.

Authorized Sentences (Maine Law - §1152)

• Every natural person and organization convicted of a crime shall be sentenced in accordance with the provisions of this Part.
• Every natural person convicted of a crime must be sentenced to at least one of the following sentencing alternatives:
  • A. Unconditional discharge as authorized by chapter 54-D.
  • B. A split sentence of imprisonment with probation as authorized by chapter 49.
  • C. A fine, suspended in whole or in part, with, at the court's discretion, probation as authorized by chapter 49.
  • D. A suspended term of imprisonment with probation as authorized by chapter 49.
  • F. A term of imprisonment as authorized by chapter 51.
  • G. A fine as authorized by chapter 53. Such a fine may be imposed in addition to the sentencing alternatives in paragraphs B, D, F, H, I, L, M and N.
  • H. A county jail reimbursement fee as authorized by chapter 54-B.
  • I. A specified number of hours of community service work as authorized by chapter 54-C.
  • K. A fine, suspended in whole or in part, with, at the court's discretion, administrative release as authorized by chapter 54-G.
  • L. A suspended term of imprisonment with administrative release as authorized by chapter 54-G.
  • M. A split sentence of imprisonment with administrative release as authorized by chapter 54-G.
  • N. A term of imprisonment followed by a period of supervised release as authorized by chapter 50.
• Except when specifically precluded, in choosing the appropriate punishment for every natural person convicted of a crime, the court shall consider the desirability of imposing a sentencing alternative involving a fine either in conjunction with or in lieu of imposing a sentencing alternative involving imprisonment.

Imprisonment for Crimes Other Than Murder (Maine Law - §1252)

• In the case of a person convicted of a crime other than murder, the court may sentence to imprisonment for a definite term as provided for in this section, unless the statute which the person is convicted of violating expressly provides that the fine and imprisonment penalties it authorizes may not be suspended, in which case the convicted person shall be sentenced to imprisonment and required to pay the fine authorized therein. Except as provided in subsection 7, the place of imprisonment must be as follows.
  • A. For a Class D or Class E crime the court must specify a county jail as the place of imprisonment.
  • B. For a Class A, Class B or Class C crime the court must:
    • (1) Specify a county jail as the place of imprisonment if the term of imprisonment is 9 months or less; or
    • (2) Commit the person to the Department of Corrections if the term of imprisonment is more than 9 months.
• The court shall set the term of imprisonment as follows:
  • A. In the case of a Class A crime, the court shall set a definite period not to exceed 30 years.
  • B. In the case of a Class B crime, the court shall set a definite period not to exceed 10 years.
  • C. In the case of a Class C crime, the court shall set a definite period not to exceed 5 years.
  • D. In the case of a Class D crime, the court shall set a definite period of less than one year.
  • E. In the case of a Class E crime, the court shall set a definite period not to exceed 6 months.
• The court may add to the sentence of imprisonment a restitution order as is provided for in chapter 49, section 1204, subsection 2-A, paragraph B. In such cases, it shall be the

Offense and Sentence

• 'A' Violent Felony: Life, 20-25 years
• 'B' Violent Felony: 5-25 years
• 'B' Non-Violent Felony: 1-3, Max 25 years
• 'C' Violent Felony: 3 1/2 to 15 years
• 'C' Non-Violent Felony: No Jail, Probation, 1-2 years to 15 years
• 'D' Violent Felony: 2-7 years
• 'D' Non-Violent Felony: No Jail, Probation, 1-3 to 7 years
• 'E' Violent Felony: No Jail, Probation, 1 1/2 to 4 years
• 'E' Non-Violent Felony: No Jail, Probation, 1 1/3 to 4 years

Use a Gun and You're Done

• During a Crime:
  • Pull a gun - 10 years
  • Fire a gun - 20 years
  • Shoot someone - 25 to LIFE

Problems with Discretionary Sentencing

• Teenager's Sentence in Fatal Drunken-Driving Case Stirs 'Affluenza' Debate
• Man sentenced to life for stealing $50 freed after 36 years

Methods of Execution

Capital Punishment by State

• Legal, Moratorium, Not Legal
• U.S. States by Number of Executions Since 1976
• Executions Since 1976:
  • 1-7
  • 8-28
  • 29-56
  • 57-123
  • 124-586
  • None

Capital Punishment by State (Execution Rate)

• Execution Rate by State
• Executions Per Sentence

2023 Executions

• China: 1000s
• Iran: 853
• Saudi Arabia: 172
• USA: 24
• Iraq: 16
• Yemen: 15
• Egypt: 8
• Bangladesh: 5
• Kuwait: 5
• Singapore: 5

Incarceration rates by country (2023)

• Highest
  • El Salvador: 1,086 per 100K
  • Cuba: 794 per 100K
  • Rwanda: 637 per 100K
  • Turkmenistan: 576 per 100K
  • United States: 531 per 100K
  • Panama: 499 per 100K
  • Palau: 428 per 100K
  • Uruguay: 424 per 100K
  • Bahamas: 409 per 100K
  • Turkey: 400 per 100K
• Lowest
  • San Marino: 9 per 100K
  • Liechtenstein: 15 per 100K
  • Gambia: 22 per 100K
  • DR Congo: 24 per 100K
  • RO Congo: 27 per 100K
  • Guinea Bissau: 31 per 100K
  • Guinea: 34 per 100K
  • Yemen: 35 per 100K
  • Japan: 36 per 100K
  • Afghanistan: 36 per 100K

Incarceration rates by state (adult)

• Highest
  • Mississippi: 661 per 100,000
  • Louisiana: 596 per 100,000
  • Arkansas: 574 per 100,000
  • Oklahoma: 563 per 100,000
  • Idaho: 460 per 100,000
  • Texas: 452 per 100,000
  • Arizona: 446 per 100,000
  • Kentucky: 437 per 100,000
  • Georgia: 435 per 100,000
  • Montana: 414 per 100,000
• Lowest
  • Massachusetts: 94 per 100,000
  • Maine: 107 per 100,000
  • Rhode Island: 124 per 100,000
  • Vermont: 126 per 100,000
  • New Jersey: 137 per 100,000
  • New Hampshire: 149 per 100,000
  • Minnesota: 151 per 100,000
  • New York: 159 per 100,000
  • Connecticut: 170 per 100,000
  • Washington: 174 per 100,000

Total Persons Under Supervision in U.S., 2022

• Total = 5,407,300
• Probation 54% (2,990,900)
• Prison 22% (1,230,100)
• Parole 12% (698,800)
• Jail 12% (663,100)

Alternatives to Incarceration

• Before incarceration
  • Diversion
  • Probation
  • Community service
• After incarceration
  • Parole
  • Re-entry/Reintegration
• Hybrid models
  • Suspended sentences
  • Split sentences
  • “Shock” sentences
  • Intermittent incarceration

Key Terms and Concepts

• Four reasons for sentencing
• Restorative justice
• Indeterminate and determinate sentencing
• Truth-in-sentencing
• Aggravating and mitigating circumstances
• Sentencing disparities
• Victim impact statement
• Capital punishment