Thesis on "Race and Sentencing"

Thesis 5 pages (1316 words) Sources: 3 Style: APA

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Race in the Criminal Justice System

There are a disproportionate number of minorities in the prison system compared to their White counterparts. As of 2006 Blacks accounted for only 13.4% of the American population (U.S. Census Bureau), however they accounted for 41% of all inmates in the prison population (U.S. Dept. Of Justice Bureau of Justice Statistics). Altogether, minorities made up 66% of the entire prison population (U.S. Dept. Of Justice Bureau of Justice Statistics). With the disparity of Blacks and minorities incarcerated, the question of systematic inequality has been raised.

As an emergence of the war of crime, harsh sentencing practices such as three strikes and charging juveniles as adults has arisen. These practices have been implemented as deterrents to crime however, are the harsh sentencing practices being distributed equally among all offenders. Weather perceived or real, concerns about racial profiling, sentencing disparities and jury composition are factors that should be examined.

One issue that insinuates inequality in the punitive system is the disparity in sentencing for crack cocaine opposed to powder cocaine. According to the article "Justices Unfetter Judges on Sentences; The Supreme Court said Sentencing Guidelines are Advisory, not Mandatory. A Racial Disparity was seen." By Emilie Lounsberry, "harsher penalties for crack cocaine was unfair to Black defendants" (pg. 1 paragraph 4). According to the article, a two-tier cocaine sentence existed as crack cocaine was more punitive than that of powder cocaine.

The author, Emilie Lounsberry, suggests that the problem in the two-tier cocaine sentencing targeted Blacks. Crack cocaine was more prevalent in the Black community, therefore the chances of usage and distribution would more likely be from Black individuals. A person convicted of distributing powder cocaine would have to distribute 100 times more than that of crack cocaine to receive the same harsh sentence.

The disparity in this law has not gone unheard. For years civil rights activist have argued against mandatory sentencing in the drug law. This law is currently in the appellate court arguing for the right to allow judges more discretion when sentencing individual based on review of the individual's case.

The revelation of the preceding information suggests judicial inequality exits, and according to the article "Racial prejudice, perceived injustice, and the Black-White gap in punitive attitudes," by Devon Johnson there is a gap in the opinions among blacks and whites about punitive distribution. The author suggests that whites are more in favor of stiffer prison sentences and the death penalty than their black counterparts. Devon Johnson examines the reason why blacks are less favorable and whites are more favorable for harsher sentences and states that "blacks' support for the punitive policies should be tempered by the belief that the criminal justice system is biased against them" (pg.3 paragraph 1).

The author reveals that Blacks have more negative views about racial fairness and the police than Whites. Since more Blacks could identify with vicarious exposure to incarceration, Blacks were more apathetic and less supportive to severe sentencing. Devon Johnson survey revealed that 79% of Whites polled believed that juveniles charged with violent crime should be tried and sentenced as adults compared to 62% of Blacks polled. It also suggested that 67% of Whites and 44% of Blacks believed that penalties for violent crime were too light (pg.7 paragraph 1)

The pattern of Whites being more punitive than Blacks was consistent with 84% of whites and 66% of Blacks being in favor of the three strikes law. The 3 strikes law would mandate life imprisonment for individuals being convicted of their 3rd felony. Finally, the poll revealed 78% of Whites and 65% of Blacks agreed that parole boards should be stricter.

The aforementioned study revealed the perception of fairness in the judicial system among Whites and Blacks. This is not a new concept and judicial research has been conducted to examine the differences in the response. According to the article "Studying Inequality with One Eye: A New Agenda for Evaluating Disparate Treatment… READ MORE

How to Reference "Race and Sentencing" Thesis in a Bibliography

Related Thesis Papers:

Race and Racism in the Chicano a Community Research Paper

Race and Racism in the Chicana/O Community

Two major challenges that exist regarding Chicana/o education that is connected largely to race are the high dropout rates for students of this… read more

Research Paper 4 pages (1249 words) Sources: 5 Topic: Race / Ethnic Studies / Racism

---

Race in My Community of Davis Growing Thesis

Race in My Community of Davis

Growing up in a small, suburban college-oriented town, the Pleasantville type of existence is pretty much in my blood. I no longer notice the… read more

Thesis 5 pages (1631 words) Sources: 3 Style: APA Topic: Race / Ethnic Studies / Racism

---

Race and Ethnicity Despite Its Many Claims Term Paper

Race and Ethnicity

Despite its many claims and indeed efforts to the contrary, the United States of America has always been a country of division and segregation. Race, gender and… read more

Term Paper 6 pages (2094 words) Sources: 1+ Topic: Race / Ethnic Studies / Racism

---

Race, Class and Gender / Blacks Term Paper

Race, Class and Gender / Blacks & Latinos

The impact of issues relative to ethnicity, socioeconomic class and gender on African-Americans and Latinos from WWII through the 1970s was dramatic… read more

Term Paper 4 pages (1458 words) Sources: 2 Topic: Race / Ethnic Studies / Racism

---

Race, Ethnicity and Cultural Diversity Research Paper

Race, Ethnicity and Cultural Diversity

I am a Caucasian and I live in Coos Bay, Oregon, a coastal community of about 16,660 people. In our rural county, we have about… read more

Research Paper 5 pages (2018 words) Sources: 5 Topic: Race / Ethnic Studies / Racism

---

View 100+ more related papers  >>