Sentencing Paper Individual

When it comes to the criminal trial process, the last step those who are found guilty face before they are incarcerated is receiving their sentencing. There is more to a judge handing down a sentence than just giving the convicted person a time limit for how long he has to stay in incarcerated. When it comes to the different ranges of sentencing, there are five goals of contemporary criminal sentencing, the nature of structured sentencing must be understood and its positives explained, and determinate sentencing must be understood. Sentencing is not a cut and dry process. There is a lot that goes into it that many do not know about.

Incapacitation involves imprisonment for offenders who commit crimes to prevent the possibilities of future offenses. (Schmalleger & Smykla, 2009, pg# 74) Incapacitation has reduced the crime rate considerably. Some offenders get out on bail or bond, serve the minimum of the sentence and out on parole or probation. Offenders realize that is getting more and more expensive to cover up their crime. Therefore, they are expecting to be caught. Rehabilitation or reformation is another form of sentencing. Rehabilitation is a process of treatment for offenders to get them back on track. It gets to the core of why the offender acted this way. Restoration is a process that makes the victim, offender and society go back to their original conditions. Victims will be

Incarceration of offenders has been the typical and most commonly used form of sentencing in corrections. Punishment is often the first choice when an offender breaks the law, which is understandable, because criminals should be held accountable for their crimes. Corrections is a system of checks and balances that holds individuals responsible for their actions. We must ask

After a defendant is convicted or pleads guilty, a judge will then decide a suitable punishment (or sentence) during the sentencing phase of a criminal case. There are varying outcomes that can influence sentencing offenders, they can range from probation and community service to prison and even the death penalty. Minor infractions, misdemeanors, or offenders who plead guilty usually get sentenced almost immediately after ones convictions. In complex criminal cases such as serious felonies, the sentencing judge will usually receive input from the probation department which prepares a pre-sentence report with recommendations. Prosecutors and the defense will also speak to the judge regarding to ones convictions. There are several factors that a judge can choose from when determining a criminal sentence. These include: Does the offender have prior criminal history; Was the offender an accessory or the main offender; Was the offender under any personal stress or duress when the crime was committed; Was anyone injured; Was the offender cruel to a victim, or destructive in nature, did the offender display remorse or regret for crimes. However, not every conviction means a trip to prison. Judges in most cases have a great deal of discretion when determining a sentence. Some of these alternative sentences can include suspended sentences, community service, probation, deferred adjudication, and even fines or restitution. Furthermore, multiple sentences can be served

Discuss factors that affect sentencing decisions, including the purposes of punishment and the role of the victim

The U.S. corrections system, a subdivision of the criminal justice system, continues to undergo change. From its beginnings as laws written in stone, the corrections system has sought to punish offenders. The origin of the corrections system dates back several thousand years and has witnessed various perspectives and goals. The best method of administering punishment to these prisoners has remained an issue of dispute for many years. Events through history, such

In today’s society crimes in the United State are growing each day, and the major aspect of the U.S criminal justice system is the punishment imposed on those who committed crimes in our communities. One method of sentencing criminals was the establishment of the mandatory minimum sentencing. During the early days of the republic, specific sentences were carried out for certain crime and early mandatory sentences the forms of punishment used at the time stretched from ducking stools/cucking stools for disorderly women and dishonest tradesmen in England, Soctland to hanging for convicted murderers. However, in recent years, evidence gathered have shown that the federal mandatory minimum sentencing were not in effect for reaching the goals of the criminal justice system. Chief Justice William Rehnquist has previously stated that “these statutes are “perhaps a good example of the law of unintended consequences. This essay will discuss the history, goals, benefits, and negatives of the American Judicial Systems Mandatory Sentencing.

2014). The official authorities in office that make legal decisions and judgments that are using indeterminate sentencing often employ statutes that identify clearly minimum and maximum terms (Siegel, L. 2014). Equally, they also permit judicial discretion to fix the actual sentence given within these guidelines (Siegel, L. 2014). Even though rehabilitation and parole have been under heavy attack by those who argue that criminals should be punished and not overprotected (Siegel, L. 2014). When said and done the indeterminate sentence is still the most widely used types of sentence the determinate sentencing continues to be favored in nearly one-third of the states (Siegel, L. and Bartollas, C.

The Department of Corrections has continuously changed their goals and objectives throughout the history of corrections. The continuous changes to policies have many contributing factors beginning with the Attorney General, Governors, and appointed directors of the incarceration establishments. With changing laws, new problems arising and changing political stand points based on campaign agendas prisons themselves have been forced to adapt. When asked what the objectives of punishment are here in the U.S., my first thought would be that the goal of punishment would be to enforce society’s laws and

Today there are several options a judge can grant an offender in regards to the punishment they shall fulfill before or after trial. This refers to any way ranging to non imprisonment yet supervised ways used to deal with criminal offenders who are facing conviction or who has been convicted.. There are punishment an offender may receive such as fines, community service, electronic surveillance also know as house arrest, shock probation, intensive supervision, residential community supervision etc. The most common punishment used by the justice system is probation as well as parole. Probation is the release of an offender from detention , subject to a period of good behavior under supervision. An individual may be granted probation as an

Truth-in-sentencing laws were designed to reduce the disparity between court-ordered sentences and the time offenders actually served (Brunt, 2015). According to USLegal Definitions (n.d.), it requires inmates to serve a substantial portion of their sentence before release is eligible. Under the truth-in-sentencing law, policies such as goodtime, earned-time, and parole board release are restricted or eliminate (USLegal Definitions, n.d.). According to Drizin (2015), In the mid-1990’s the federal government provided financial incentives to states to build correctional facilities and to implement truth-in-sentencing, mandatory minimums and other policies that increased of sentences of juveniles convicted in criminal court.

Throughout time, the use of punishment has changed drastically. Not only has the actual infliction of punishment changed, the reasoning behind this punishment has also changed. There have been numerous scholars, educators, and researchers that have presented various theories on the reasoning behind societal punishment. Some of these theories are closely similar, however some are drastically different. It is important to note that these theorists have broad perceptions that can be rooted back to specific time periods throughout history. Societal punishment is defined as, “punishment being a complex social institution, shaped by the ensemble of social and historical forces and having a range of effects that reach well beyond the population of offenders” (Garland, 1991).

The Different Aims of Sentencing There are a number of reasons why a society punishes offenders. These include, among others, to discourage the offender from committing further crimes (individual deterrence), to help the offender, so that he or she won’t offend again (rehabilitation), to prevent the offender from committing further crimes through imprisonment (incapacitation) and to show society’s disapproval of the crime (denunciation). Retribution is to punish on the premise that it is a payback for the offence (Retribution carries with it the notion of “Do the crime, do the time”) Reparation is aimed at compensating the victim of the crime usually by ordering the offender to pay order to

One of the oldest justifications for punishment involves the principles of retribution. Retribution (1900-1905) refers to an idea that offenders should be punished for committing a crime, but would not punish someone who was forced to commit a cri-me, i.e. duress. It can be sometimes be viewed as a

Punishment has been in existence since the early colonial period and has continued throughout history as a method used to deter criminals from committing criminal acts. Philosophers believe that punishment is a necessity in today’s modern society as it is a worldwide response to crime and violence. Friedrich Nietzche’s book “Punishment and Rehabilitation” reiterates that “punishment makes us into who we are; it creates in us a sense of responsibility and the ability to take and release our social obligations” (Blue, Naden, 2001). Immanuel Kant believes that if an individual commits a crime then punishment should be inflicted upon that individual for the crime committed. Cesare Beccaria, also believes that if there is a breach of the