Essay on "Criminal Justice & Sentencing Issues"

Essay 4 pages (1119 words) Sources: 5 Style: MLA

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Criminal Justice - Corrections

CRIMINAL JUSTICE: CRIMINAL SENTENCING ISSUES

Criminal Sentencing:

Generally, the purpose of sentencing is to assign a type and length of punishment corresponding to particular types of penal violations. Much more specifically, sentencing incorporates five objectives: retribution, incapacitation, deterrence, rehabilitation, and restoration (Schmalleger, 2001). Retribution reflects the natural instincts of human beings and was featured predominantly throughout human history. In more modern times, criminology theory has deemphasized retribution in formal legislation and policy in favor of functional incapacitation, mainly through incarceration and deterrence.

Similarly, increased attention and effort in the areas of rehabilitation have been employed as a means of crime prevention, instead of focusing on punishing crime, after the fact. Restoration is a concept of compensating victims of crimes, which can be in the form of monetary awards or simply consideration of victims' sentiments about the crime and the criminal during the sentencing phase of trial (Schmalleger, 2001).

The main differences in sentencing forms among different states concerns the distinction between determinate and indeterminate sentencing. The former refers to a system in which specific criminal offenses trigger specific sentences upon conviction as a matter of law that are not subject to judicial discretion. The latter refers to a system in which judges may prescribe very different sentences for conviction on similar offenses.

Proponents of determinate sentencing argue that excessive judicial latitude in sentencing undermines the intent of legislators; that it is necessary to ensure equal treatment under the law to all criminal defendants; that it encourages "judge shopping"; that it undermines truth in sentencing by failing to ensure that convicted criminals actually serve a substantial portion of their criminal sentences; and that it allows for the potential of personal bias and prejudice on the part of judges (Schmalleger, 2001).

Proponents of indeterminate sentencing suggest that determinate sentencing applies inappropriately harsh sentences that cannot take into account mitigating factors to the extent necessary to achieve justice; that it undermines the ability of the criminal justice system to emphasize rehabilitation; and that restricting judicial discretion without changing prosecutorial authority produces an imbalance that favors the prosecution (Schmalleger, 2001). Some of the best proposals designed to incorporate both sets of concerns are variations of sentencing approaches that allow for certain elements of judicial discretion but within mandatory sentencing guidelines in the form of minimum sentences. By legislating a mandatory minimum sentence, the partial determinant strategy ensures that offenders who perpetrate specific classes of crimes never escape minimum sentences established by legislators for those crimes while still allowing for the exercise of judicial discretion and input as appropriate in individual cases. Contemporary Sentencing Issues Addressed by the U.S. Sentencing Commission:

According to the 2007 report of the U.S. Sentencing Commission (USSC) to Congress, current issues in federal sentencing include guidelines for: modification of penalties associated with offenses related to trafficking crack cocaine including the "100- to-1 ratio" problem; four specific counterterrorism offenses under the U.S.A. PATRIOT

Improvement and reauthorization Act of 2005; the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006; and violations of anti-counterfeiting statutes pertaining to commercial product rights infringement.

The "100-to-1" issue is a reference to the fact that under federal law, powdered cocaine and crack cocaine are treated remarkably different. Critics of the 100-to-1 disparity suggest that such different sentences imposed for crimes so similar impact the very communities already suffering from poverty and… READ MORE

How to Reference "Criminal Justice and Sentencing Issues" Essay in a Bibliography

Related Essays:

Criminal Justice - Corrections Issues Essay

Criminal Justice - Corrections Issues

CRIMINAL JUSTICE ISSUES: CORRECTIONS

What is the more important goal of the justice system, to control crime or to ensure justice?

No single purpose defines… read more

Essay 2 pages (547 words) Sources: 0 Style: APA Topic: Crime / Police / Criminal Justice

---

Criminal Justice System Juvenile Delinquency Identify Three Term Paper

Criminal Justice System Juvenile Delinquency

Identify three components of the diversionary program and initiatives within the NCJRS website Woman & Girls in the Criminal Justice System.

Gender-Specific Assessment of Offender's… read more

Term Paper 3 pages (842 words) Sources: 1 Topic: Crime / Police / Criminal Justice

---

Criminal Justice the Issue of Future Dangerousness Term Paper

Criminal Justice

The Issue of Future Dangerousness in Capital Murder Trials

One of the most controversial elements of Texas' capital murder statute is that it requires juries to find that… read more

Term Paper 2 pages (726 words) Sources: 1+ Topic: Crime / Police / Criminal Justice

---

Criminal Justice Process Essay

Criminal Justice Process

Considerable attention has been devoted to law, both substantive and procedural on the justice process. The criminal justice system is a legal system. How does the law… read more

Essay 14 pages (5190 words) Sources: 7 Style: APA Topic: Crime / Police / Criminal Justice

---

Criminal Procedure Term Paper

Criminal Procedure:

The criminal justice system is a process that involves various steps that start with a criminal investigation and end with the release of a convicted criminal from correctional… read more

Term Paper 4 pages (1602 words) Sources: 4 Topic: Crime / Police / Criminal Justice

---

View 100+ more related papers  >>