CCJ2020 EXAM 3 Chapter 11 SENTENCING March 25 2013 We watched videos on Top Secret America Read chapter 11 because he cant cover everything Incapacitation incarcerate Graph Showing how much each country spends a day for incarceration USA 700 Russia 550 South Africa 400 Europe avg 150 Canada 100 Austrailia 100 Japan 50 Incarceration trend is not in a declining slope it is always inclining In the 1970 s Nixon started a war on drugs We have spent nearly a trillion of dollars and have not made 1 difference Incapacitation is linked to recidivism rates as well With more people in jail Incarcerated people are lowering their arrests after incarceration Deterrence Specific Deterrence Seeks to prevent recidivism repeat offending by convicted offenders General Deterrence General Deterrence is a sentencing objective which aims to discourage persons other than the offender from committing a similar crime It is a type of crime prevention achieved through instilling fear in the general population through the punishment of offenders seeks to prevent general population not offenders from committing a crime Indeterminate Sentencing A model of criminal punishment that encourages rehabilitation via the use of general and relatively unspecific sentences Provides discretion for judges and prosecutors Indeterminate sentencing allows judges to have a wide range of discretion Sentences are often given in a range i e ten to twenty years March 27 2013 Aggravating and Mitigating Factors Aggravating Circumstances relating to the commission of a crime that make it more grave than the average instance of that crime Call for a tougher sentence Mitigating Circumstances relating to the commission of a crime that may be considered to reduce the blameworthiness of the defendant Federal Sentencing Guidelines The comprehensive Crime Control Act of 1984 established presumptive sentencing for federal offenders and addressed truth in sentencing Truth in Sentencing a close correspondence between the sentence imposed upon an offender and the actual time served prior to release from prison And important policy focus Reason this took off in the 1980 s is because of two things 1 Wolfgang et al in 1975 found that 5 6 of offenders committed 50 or more of the crime Recidivism rates are extremely high Is it true that nothing works By Jerome G Miller 1989 Robert Martinson was saying that noting treatment rehabilitation doesn t work Federal Sentencing Guidelines The US Sentencing Commission Established under Sentencing Reform Act of 1984 and took effect in November 1987 9 member commission set minimum sentences for certain federal offenses commission meets YEARLY to review guidelines Purpose of the Guidelines is to Limit federal judges discretion Reduce disparity Promote consistency and uniformity Increase fairness and equity Plea Bargaining Under the Guidelines Of all federal cases 90 are the result of guilty please of which the vast majority are the result for plea negotiations Melendez v U S 1996 Judges cannot accept plea bargains that would have resulted in sentences lower than the minimum required by law for a particular type of offense The Legal Environment of Structured Sentencing Apprendi v New Jersey 2000 held that requiring sentencing judges to consider facts not proven to a jury is unconstitutional This raised the question of whether judges could legitimately deviate from sentencing guidelines Blakely v Washington 2004 invalidated any state sentencing schema that allowed judges rather than juries to determine any factor that increases a criminal sentence except for prior convictions This holding was reinforced in Cunningham v California 2007 March 29 2013 Finished the movie documentary on TOP SECRET AMERICA April 1st NO CLASS Wednesday April 3rd 2013 Chapter 12 Corrections The Extent of Probation Probation is the most commonly used form of sentencing Cheap sentence Keeps family s together because no one is going to jail 20 60 of guilty individuals are placed on probation The number of offenders supervised yearly on probation increased from slightly more than 1 million people to over 4 million today States vary with regard to extent of use Even violent offenders may receive probation Examples Probation Conditions General Conditions Apply to all probationers within the jurisdiction Obey laws Maintain employment Remain in the jurisdiction city Allow probation officer to visit home or work place Do community service Specific Conditions Jude mandated for the specific probationer Examples Surrender drivers license Pass GED test Curfew Complete a treatment plan Parole vs Probation Parole Offenders spend time incarcerated before release Parole is an administrative decision made by paroling authority Parolees must abide by conditions or risk revocation Probation Probationers generally avoid prison time Probation is a sentencing decision made by a judge Probationers must abide by conditions or risk revocation Parole Decision Making Mechanisms Two Approaches Parole Boards board Grant discretionary parole based on judgment and assessment by parole Statutory Decrees Produce mandatory parole with release date set near sentence end minus good time Advantages and Disadvantages of Probation and Parole Advantages Low Cost Increased employment Restitution maintain income be able to pay back restitution to victims Reduced risk of criminal sanctions Better rehabilitation opportunities Increased use of community services Community support Disadvantages Relative lack of punishment Increased risk to community Higher social costs Discriminatory and unequal effects Griffin v Wisconsin 1987 Supreme court ruled that probation officers may conduct searches of a probationers residence without a search warrant or probable cause Thought the 4th amendment normally provides for privacy probation presents special needs beyond normal law enforcement that may justify departures Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole v Scott Supreme Court declined to extend the exclusionary rule to searches done by parole officers U S v Knights 2001 Expanded the search authority normally reserved for probation and parole officers to police officers under certain circumstances Sampson v California 2006 The U S Supreme Court found that the 4th amendment does NOT prohibit police officers from conducting a warrantless search of a person who is subject to a parole search condition even when there is no suspicion of criminal wrongdoing and the sole reason for the search is
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