1. CHAPTER EIGHT
SENTENCING

2. Introduction Government determines sanction range for each offense
Judge or jury responsible for sentencing
Broad range of potential criminal sentences
Probation, fines, community service
Incarceration
Death Penalty

3. Responsibility for Sentencing Decisions
Prosecuting and Defense Attorneys
Initial charges define sentencing options
Plea bargaining implies a suggested sentence
Probation officer prepares pre-sentence investigation report
Ultimate decision rests with the judge
Must agree to plea bargaining
May prescribe any sentence consistent with legislative guidelines
Jury must determine sentencing in capital cases
Jury determines liability and compensation in civil cases

4. Misdemeanor Sentences
Probation
Community Service
Fines
Incarceration

5. Probation Period of supervision by the corrections system
Elements of probation
Criminal sentence
Judicial function
Conditional
Supervision by probation officers
Types of probation
Active—offender reports to a probation officer and must abide by court- imposed conditions
Informal (summary)—probation without supervision

6. Community Service
Goal is to minimize negative effects while giving back to the community
Potential services
Cleaning parks
Removing graffiti
Washing public vehicles
Working at an animal shelter
Many others

7. Fines Primarily for traffic violations and petty misdemeanors
Not all people have the same ability to pay
Some courts have day fine systems, in which fine is determined by:
Penalty days
Individual’s income

8. Incarceration Petty misdemeanors: up to 6 months in jail
Serious misdemeanors: 6 months to 1 year in jail
Judge may suspend jail time
Judge may impose consecutive misdemeanor sentences

9. Felony Sentences Community-Based Sanctions Probation
Economic Sanctions
Incarceration
Capital Punishment

10. Community-Based Sanctions
Placement in a live-in facility
Provides treatment and structure for offenders
Probation
Often used for property or drug offenses
Fewer felons have received probation in recent years
Economic Sanctions
Increasing reliance by the court system
Often used for crimes with a profit motive (drug trafficking, RICO)
Includes fines and property forfeiture
May be used alone or in conjunction with other punishments

11. Incarceration Shock Incarceration May be incarcerated in a local jail
Short period of incarceration, followed by an extended probation period
Designed as a specific deterrence
May be incarcerated in a local jail
Sentences of 1 year to life
Average sentence is 57 months
Violent offenders more likely to receive prison sentences

12. Capital Punishment Controversial issue
Part of sentencing scheme since nation’s founding
State decides whether death penalty is permissible
Involves a bifurcated hearing process
Juries must consider aggravating and mitigating circumstances
Jury verdicts must be unanimous

13. Sentencing Decision Making Process
Prosecuting Attorneys
Decision whether to prosecute
Decision about what crimes to charge
Horizontal overcharging: charging defendant with as many different offenses or counts as possible
Vertical overcharging: charging a defendant with a more serious crime than the evidence supports
Gives the prosecutor an advantage in plea bargaining
Judges
Choice among legislatively-defined sentences
Decision to suspend the sentence
Choice of concurrent or consecutive sentences

14. Sentencing Strategies Employed
Indeterminate Sentencing
Determinate Sentencing
Structured Sentencing
Mandatory Sentencing

15. Indeterminate Sentencing
Minimum and maximum periods of confinement specified
Emphasizes individualization and rehabilitation
Judge imposes sentence
Actual time serve determined by parole board

16. Determinate Sentencing
Provides a specific amount of time to be served
Discretionary parole is abolished
Release date is established by court sentence minus good time credit
Movement toward determinate sentencing resulted from political criticism

17. Structured Sentencing
Sentencing guidelines define sentences for each crime
Utilizes a 2-dimensional sentencing grid
Present offense
Defendant’s criminal history
Other factors (age, race, socio-economic status, drug use, employment history, etc) are not considered
Goals
Allows policymakers to control sentencing policies
Can be linked to available prison space
Promotes development and expansion of community corrections alternatives
Attempts to eliminate disparities in sentencing

18. Mandatory Sentencing
All states and the federal government have some form of mandatory sentencing
Assures that certain offenders receive a specified prison term
Habitual offender laws
Constitutional challenges

19. Race, Ethnicity, and Gender in Sentencing
Minorities
Debate over disproportionate sentencing for minorities
Blacks constitute 12.8% of population and 38% of convicted felons
Whites constitute the majority of all felon categories except weapons offenses
Gender
Women constitute 50.7% of the population and 18% of convicted felons
Women most often commit property crimes, drug offenses, and “other” felonies
Reasons for underrepresentation of women
Women are better at the crimes they commit and escape apprehension
Women are less likely to commit crimes
Criminal justice system is less likely to sanction women (chivalry hypothesis)

20. Trends in Sentencing Movement toward determinate sentencing
Sentencing guidelines
Increased punitiveness
Truth in sentencing
Capital Punishment