Chapter 8 overview
- 1. Chapter 8 Sentencing Learning Objectives After completion of this chapter, students should be able to: 1. Describe the various purposes of criminal sanctions. 2. Understand the insanity defense. 3. Describe the purpose of a presentence investigation report. 4. Detail differences between determinate and indeterminate sentencing models. 5. Explain how civil rights challenges have affected the death penalty. Chapter Outline I. Purpose of Criminal Sanctions Deterrence Incapacitation Retribution Rehabilitation Restorative Justice II. The Special Case of Mentally Ill Offenders Defining Insanity The Insanity Defense Reform Act of 1984 State Courts and the Insanity Plea Public Fear of the Insanity Plea
- 2. III. Fair Sentence IV. Presentence Investigation Report The Offender’s Background and Attitude Sentencing Hearing and Victim Impact Statements V. Sentencing Models Sentencing Models Determinate Versus Indeterminate Sentencing Mandatory Sentencing and Habitual Offender Laws Sentencing Guidelines Presumptive Sentencing Truth in Sentencing VI. Sentencing and the Death Penalty The Death Penalty and Abolitionists The Death Penalty and Civil Rights Challenges to the Death Penalty Reconsideration of the Death Penalty Key Terms Abolitionists (p. 144) people opposed to the death penalty Banishment (p. 132) the removal of an offender from the community Bifurcated trial (p. 146) a two-part trial structure in which the jury first determines guilt or innocence and then considers new evidence relating to the appropriate punishment Capital punishment (p. 143) the sentence of death Civil commitment process (p. 135) a determination of whether the defendant should be released or confined to an institution for persons with mental illness
- 3. Corporal punishment (p. 130) the administration of bodily pain as punishment for a crime Determinate sentencing (p. 140) a model of sentencing in which the offender is sentenced to a fixed term of incarceration Deterrence (p. 130) the philosophy and practices that emphasize making criminal behavior less appealing General deterrence (p. 132) the concept based on the logic that people who witness the pain suffered by those who commit crimes will desire to avoid that pain and will refrain from criminal activity Guilty but mentally ill (p. 135) a new type of verdict in which the jury finds a defendant mentally ill but sufficiently aware to be morally responsible for his or her criminal acts Habitual offender laws (p. 140) tough sentencing laws to punish repeat offenders more harshly Incapacitation (p. 132) deterrence based on the premise that the only way to prevent criminals from reoffending is to remove them from society Indeterminate sentence (p. 139) a sentence in which the defendant is sentenced to a prison term with a minimum and a maximum number of years to serve Mandatory sentencing (p. 140) the strict application of full sentences in the determinate sentencing model Not guilty by reason of insanity (p. 134) a verdict by which the jury finds that a defendant committed the crime but was insane Presentence investigator (p. 138) a person who works for the court and has the responsibility of investigating the background of the convicted offender and the circumstances surrounding the offense Presumptive sentencing (p. 141) a structured sentencing model that attempts to balance sentencing guidelines with mandatory sentencing and at the same time provide discretion to the judge Rehabilitation (p. 133) deterrence based on the premise that criminals can be “cured” of their problems and criminality and can be returned to society Restorative justice (p. 133) a model of deterrence that uses restitution programs, community work programs, victim offender mediation, and other strategies to not only rehabilitate the offender but also to address the damage done to the community and the victim
- 4. Retribution (p. 133) deterrence based on the premise that criminals should be punished because they deserve it Sentencing guidelines (p. 141) a sentencing model in which crimes are classified according to their seriousness and a range of time to be served is mandatory for crimes within each category Specific deterrence (p. 131) a concept based on the premise that a person is best deterred from committing future crimes by the specific nature of the punishment Three-strikes law (p. 140) the application of mandatory sentencing to give repeat offenders longer prison terms Transportation (p. 132) the eighteenth-century practice by Great Britain of sending offenders to the American colonies and later, to Australia Truth in sentencing (p. 143) in the application of presumptive sentencing in states that cannot eliminate parole, the legal requirement that courts disclose the actual prison time that the offender is likely to serve Victim impact statements (p. 138) testimony by victims at a convicted offender’s sentencing hearing Chapter Summary This chapter discusses the different philosophies that justify criminal sanctions. Those five include: deterrence, incapacitation, retribution, rehabilitation, and restorative justice. The special case of a mentally ill offender is considered under the concept of the insanity defense. There are two major sentencing models that can guide a judge’s decisions. These two models are indeterminate sentencing and structured sentencing. Indeterminate sentencing is based on early release through the parole system. Whereas structured sentencing includes determinate guidelines, sentencing guidelines, and presumptive sentencing. Mandatory sentencing, three strikes laws, and truth-in-sentencing laws are examples of structured sentencing. Academic research indicates that the application of criminal sanctions often discriminates against African- Americans and Hispanic males. While current day society seems to support the use of the death penalty, there is strong opposition and much controversy surrounding its application. Many states are revisiting the decision to use of the death penalty due to the number of wrongful convictions that have been documented in recent years. DNA evidence has played a major role in freeing those wrongfully convicted. Data on the effectiveness of sentencing in reducing crime rates indicate that more studies needed. Media to Explore
- 5. See www.curenational.org, the Web site of Citizens United for Rehabilitation of Errants (CURE). CURE is a nonprofit national organization dedicated to reducing crime through rehabilitation programs and reforms of the criminal justice system. Go to www.derechos.org to access Derechos Human Rights, an Internet-based human rights organization that offers links to a number of Web sites with information about the death penalty. Go to www.innocenceproject.org to visit the Web site of The Innocence Project. The Innocence project is a national litigation and public policy organization dedicated to exonerating wrongfully convicted people through DNA testing and reforming the criminal justice system to prevent future injustice. To visit Web sites for and against the death penalty, see www.deathpenalty.org to view the Web site of an organization that argues against the death penalty, and www.prodeathpenalty.com to view the Web site of an organization that argues for the death penalty. For information about the history of the death penalty and state-by-state information on executions, see the Web site of the Death Penalty Information Center at www.deathpenaltyinfo.org.