Punishment and Sentencing Vocab Notes Vocab 1 Penitentiary A state or federal correctional institution for the incarceration of felony offenders for terms of one year or more 2 General Deterrence The theory that crime rates are influenced and controlled by the threat of criminal punishment If people fear being apprehended and punished they will not risk breaking the law 3 Specific Deterrence A crime control policy suggesting that punishment should be severe 4 enough to convince convicted offenders never to repeat their criminal activity Incapacitation The policy of keeping dangerous criminals in confinement to eliminate the risk of their repeating their offense in society 5 Blameworthy Culpable or guilty of participating in a particular criminal offense 6 Just Desert The philosophy of justice asserting that those who violate the rights of others deserve to be punished The severity of punishment should be commensurate with the seriousness of the crime 7 Rehabilitation The strategy of applying proper treatment so an offender will present no further threat to society 8 Equity The action or practice of awarding each person what is due him or her sanctions 9 based on equity seek to compensate individual victims and society in general for their losses due to crime Indeterminate Sentence A term of incarceration with a stated minimum and maximum length such as a sentence to prison for a period of 3 to 10 years The prisoner would be eligible for parole after the minimum sentence has been served Based on the belief that sentences should fit the crime indeterminate sentences allow individualized sentences and provide for sentencing flexibility Judges can set a high minimum to override the purpose of the indeterminate sentence 10 Determinate Sentence A fixed term of incarceration such as three years imprisonment Many people consider determinate sentences too restrictive for rehabilitative purposes the advantage is that offenders know how much time they have to serve that is when they will be released 11 Sentencing Guidelines A set of standards that define parameters for trial judges to follow in their sentencing decisions 12 Mandatory Sentence A statutory requirement that a certain penalty shall be set and carried out in all cases upon conviction for a specified offense or series of offenses 13 Concurrent Sentences Prison sentences for two or more criminal acts served simultaneously and run together 14 Consecutive Sentences Prison sentences for two or more criminal acts served one after the other 15 Chivalry Hypothesis The view that the low rates of female crime and delinquency are a reflection of the leniency with which police and judges treat female offenders 16 Victim Impact Statement A post conviction statement by the victim of crime that may be used to guide sentencing decisions 17 Brutalization Effect An outcome of capital punishment that enhances rather than deters the level of violence in society The death penalty reinforces the view that violence is an appropriate response to provocation 18 Lex Talionis The concept of retaliation no specific punishment the offender who was convicted will be sentenced to a conviction similar to the original punishment 19 Flogging The earliest form of physical punishment Whipping 20 Mutilation Amputation Used more in ancient times mainly deterrence for criminals Ex Aladdin stealing a loaf of bread and the hand is almost cut off 21 Branding a physical visible representation Concept was to be able to identify repeat offenders and warn others 22 Public Humiliation done as a way for the community as a whole to get back at an offender social contract theory humiliates the offender enough to deter them from committing crime 23 Exile Sending criminals away to an island or isolated area and just completely remove them from society 24 Workhouses the earliest form of imprisonment wasn t originally started for criminals Made to teach the unemployed homeless etc NOT CRIMINALS how to farm how to cook and how to be successful and self sufficient PowerPoint Notes Goals of Modern Sentencing Sentencing is view in one of two ways 1 Too harsh for the crime committed 2 Too lenient for the crime committed Difference is largely attributed to individual opinion on the goals of modern sentencing 5 goals of modern sentencing 1 Incapacitation Idea of this is that if you are going to commit crime you are causing harm to society so we are going to take you away from that society The lock em up approach talks nothing about rehabilitation but they will be released 2 Retribution Very similar to lex talionis taking revenge on a criminal perpetrator It is the earliest known rationale for punishment death penalty Corresponds to the just deserts model of sentencing can t really do eye for an eye for most crimes so the punishment they receive will be appropriate to the type and severity of the crime committed The primary sentencing tool of the just deserts model is imprisonment 3 Deterrence Seeks to inhibit criminal behavior through the fear of punishment Uses the threat of punishment to convince people that a criminal activity is not worthwhile 10 20 LIFE law by George W Bush ITS OVERALL GOAL IS CRIME PREVENTION 2 different types 1 Specific Deterrence seeks to prevent a particular offender from engaging in repeat criminality 2 General Deterrence seeks to prevent other from committing crimes similar to the one for which a particular offender is being sentenced by making an example of the particular offender being sentenced One of the more rational goals of sentencing is deterrence Retribution vs Deterrence Retribution is oriented towards the past it seeks to redress wrongs already committed and deterrence is a strategy towards the future 4 Rehabilitation attempts to reform a criminal offender Seeks to bring out fundamental changes in offenders and their behavior Strategy is to apply proper treatment for the individual that offended enough to where the offender does not show any more hints that will offend in the future The term rehabilitation is misnomer for the kinds of changes that its supporters seek Means to return a person to their previous condition however it is likely that restoring criminals to their previous state will result in youthful type of criminality Nothing Works Doctrine shows that no matter how much rehabilitation people go through nothing will stop them from committing crime VIOLENT CRIME PEAKED IN 1993 5 Restoration attempts to make the victim whole again Seeks
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