...Sentencing Paper Sentencing is really important in the criminal justice system. There are many reasons for sentencing in the United States. Sentencing is the result of punishment from the court. The major reasons for punishment is retribution, deterrence, rehabilitation, compensation, and reform. The type of punishment for crimes has been debated by different leaders and law makers for centuries. The punishment for reform is intended to help the offender and society to change the wrongdoer a chance to contribute to society. The punishment for deterrence is intended to benefit society by preventing offenders that would-be from committing a crime. Punishment to extract compensation is intended to benefit the victim of the offender. Finally, retribution is the only object for punishment that is primarily intended to harm the offender. Individuals are sentenced to prison because they broke the rules and would have to serve their time. There are different sentencing guidelines for state and federal prisons. When a person has either pleaded guilty or has been found guilty of a crime, a judge has to decide a sentence that the offender must receive. Sentencing is imposing a criminal sanction by a judicial authority. Each year there are thousands of criminals that appear before a judge or judges to be sentenced for their crimes committed. Sentencing descriptions are primarily for felony offenses, or those that are punishable by less than one year of...
Words: 1115 - Pages: 5
...Sentencing Brittany N Mann CJA/234 September 4, 2011 Barbara Carroll, PhD. Sentencing laws in the United States corrections vary, depending on the objectives set at the state and federal levels. Sentencing guidelines provide structure at the criminal sentencing stage by defining offense and offender elements that should be considered in each case to determine the correct sentence. There are four justifications for punishment in the United States; the four principal objectives of punishment are traditionally stated as retribution, deterrence, rehabilitation ,and incapacitation. There are many factors that determine what form of punishment you receive. The factors include the type of crime committed and previous criminal history. The state objectives for punishment are applied to misdemeanors, and the federal objective for punishment is only for felonies and serious misdemeanors. The principal objectives for punishment are retribution, deterrence, rehabilitation and incapacitation. Retribution is the justification punishment in which the offender is given a sentence that is vengeful, this given to make the offender suffer for the crime committed, to also make the offender morally responsible for the offender to...
Words: 780 - Pages: 4
...The Impact of Sentencing Guidelines on the Criminal Justice System Public Safety Capstone Project Our criminal justice system has an obligation to impose fair sentences. The United States Sentencing Commission is the result of the Sentencing Reform Act of 1984 that had laws created to ensure that sentencing was fair from state to state, and a judge provided proof of that sentencing was indeed black and white. To eliminate the possibility of being unjust, the government became involved in creating guidelines on the punishment that was rendered based on the type or types of crimes an individual committed. Sentencing guidelines were imposed to set the terms that would fit the crime some of the sentencing may be a payment of a fine, community service, incarceration, the death penalty, and or probation and parole. Throughout the years there has been a concentrated effort to standardize the sentencing especially in felony offenses, and to diminish judicial discretion in sentencing. Due to this there is a perception by lawmakers and the public that arbitrary or discriminatory practice with fair and just sentencing in certain cases and or crimes. “The Federal Government and 16 States have implemented presumptive or voluntary/advisory sentencing guidelines. Each of these states has established guidelines for different purposes and most of them were asked to meet multiple goals, including punishment, deterrence, incapacitation, and rehabilitation...
Words: 1686 - Pages: 7
...Sentencing laws in the United States corrections vary, depending on the objectives set at the state and federal levels. Sentencing guidelines provide structure at the criminal sentencing stage by defining offense and offender elements that should be considered in each case to determine the correct sentence. There are four justifications for punishment in the United States; the four principal objectives of punishment are traditionally stated as retribution, deterrence, rehabilitation, and incapacitation. There are many factors that determine what form of punishment you receive. The factors include the type of crime committed and previous criminal history. The state objectives for punishment are applied to misdemeanors, and the federal objective for punishment is only for felonies and serious misdemeanors. The principal objectives for punishment are retribution, deterrence, rehabilitation and incapacitation. Retribution is the justification punishment in which the offender is given a sentence that is vengeful, this given to make the offender suffer for the crime committed, to also make the offender morally responsible for the offender to accept responsibility for their actions. Retribution is also done to show others that the crime committed will not be tolerated. Deterrence is a justification punishment that is given with the intent of discouraging members of society from committing criminal acts out of fear of punishment. Rehabilitation is the justification punishment that is...
Words: 686 - Pages: 3
...Sentencing Paper Joan Hamm CJA 234 October 12, 2015 Dennis Holder Sentencing Paper An analysis of the state and federal objectives of punishment are the consequences or penalties for a crime(s) that have been committed. The punishment ensures that the offender is adequately punished for the offences they are being accused of. The implementation of punishment is to prevent the criminal behavior by deterring the offender from committing similar offences. Usually punishment applies to the offender per the crime that has been committed (Hamilton, 2014). If the accused is a repeat offender of federal crime then they go to a federal prison, for almost every other crime the offender goes to a state prison. A prison-- whether it be state or federal, main objectives is preventing and controlling criminal behavior and acts. There are seven usual punishments depending on the judge’s and/or the jury’s decision at trial (Hamilton, 2014). The minimum sentences like Intensive supervision such as: parole, house arrest, probation, etc., Rehabilitation such as: counseling, drug rehab, restitution, community service, fines, etc. On the contrary, more sever punishments include: capital punishment and incarceration. This type of sentencing is imposed as a criminal sanction by a judicial authority. Mandatory minimums, such as: the three strikes laws and sentencing guidelines require specific sentences. It is done with little consideration of personal factors as it pertains to offenders, their...
Words: 1267 - Pages: 6
...not just of law enforcement officials, but also of the criminal justice system itself. Disparities in sentencing have skyrocketed since the 1980s and this increase is pushed by the war on drugs. Despite the clear evidence showing that sentencing reform must become a priority for policymakers due to both the social and economic aspects of this issue, things remain the same. The purpose of this essay is to inform the debate on sentencing reform, race, and education....
Words: 1647 - Pages: 7
...In our criminal justice system, sentencing guidelines allow a judge discretion in determining minimum and maximum penalties for a convicted individual. (Hinojosa, 2-4, 9, 11) In certain crimes, juries have influence in the determination of penalties (Klein, 694-695) Sentencing guidelines are designed to reduce variation in sentencing for particular crimes. (Klein, 694) The justice system acknowledges the difficulty in accurately assigning attribution and predicting the likelihood a criminal will repeat their crime. The textbook discusses several types of attributional errors that I think are relevant in the complex issues of sentencing and crime. (Baron, 101) I can envision many situations in which either judges or juries are incorrect in their determination of a criminal’s motive that leads to either too stringent or too lenient sentencing. A quick google search on jury bias yields several pages of studies and articles discussing the challenges of correctly assessing the amount of bias a juror will have in criminal proceedings. Current sentencing guidelines for many crimes attempt to limit the amount of bias from both judges and jurors. Ethically I think standardized sentencing guidelines based upon objective criteria such as the severity of the crime and the frequency of the individual has been convicted of a crime are the best approach. Whether or not someone spends a significant portion of their lives in jail is too important a decision to risk attribution error and bias...
Words: 331 - Pages: 2
...U.S.D.J. 11 Cr. 907 (JSR) SENTENCING MEMORANDUM AND ORDER The Court is called upon to impose sentence on Rajat K. Gupta, who on June 15, 2012, was found guilty by a jury of one count of conspiracy and three counts of substantive securities fraud, in connection with providing material non-public information to Raj Rajaratnam. Federal law requires a court to state, not only orally but in writing, its reasons for imposing a sentence “different from” a Guidelines sentence. 18 U.S.C. § 3553(c)(2). See also United States v. Rattoballi, 452 F.3d 127, 128-29 (2d Cir. 2006). This will be a non-guidelines sentence, and, accordingly, the Court will both read this Sentencing Memorandum in open court and docket it promptly thereafter. Imposing a sentence on a fellow human being is a formidable responsibility. It requires a court to consider, with great care and The notion that sensitivity, a large complex of facts and factors. this complicated analysis, and moral responsibility, can be reduced to the mechanical adding-up of a small set of numbers artificially assigned to a few arbitrarily-selected variables wars with common sense. Whereas apples and oranges may have but a few salient qualities, human beings in their interactions with society are too complicated to be treated like commodities, and the attempt to do so can only lead to bizarre results. Nowhere is this more obvious than in this very case, where the Sentencing Guidelines assign just 2 points to Mr. Gupta...
Words: 3632 - Pages: 15
...(21.4%) are nearly tied as the second most common type of offenses for which offenders are imprisoned (Schmalleger, 2009). The other type is federal prison. Federal prisons house individuals who have been convicted of federal crimes. Imprisonment or incarceration on a federal level is managed by the Federal Bureau of Prisons. How does each type play a role in the overall criminal justice system? Although both types of prisons fall under the role of corrections in the criminal justice system there are differences in the two. State prisons house the majority of the prison population. Some may refer to prisoners in state correctional facilities as blue collar criminals, compared to federal prisoners who are referred as white collar criminals. How do the criteria of each type of prison affect sentencing? There are sentencing guidelines that are followed in court. The guidelines shift the power of sentencing from judges to legislators. To ensure the correct punishment for a crime there is a specific grid that is followed. The grid identifies the right sentence for an individual who committed a specific crime and figures in a criminal history score. Congress also passed the Federal Sentencing Guidelines Act, which takes away parole for federal criminals, and limits...
Words: 325 - Pages: 2
...Criminal Justice Paper Ayana Chambers CJA 224 July 7, 2014 Tasha Hibbert In the United States justice system there are many different level of punishment depending on the type and severity of crime. Its main objective is to impose sentencing as a guideline for punishment in a criminal case. Punishment can be very severe for example the death penalty, but also can be less stringent in many criminal cases. Punishment does not essentially connote to physically punish, but could have significant ramifications in ways such as retribution. Retribution may be in the form of financial payments (restitution) and the lost of free will. Deterrence is an objective of punishment to discourage society from becoming repeated offenders. Its aim is to sentence an offender with short custodial hold in the prison system in hope that it will discourage other criminal activities. Punishments also boast the objective to rehabilitate, transform or hinder an offender. It also applies to the general criminal justice system that is considered to prevent criminals from committing more crimes. This will prove to potential criminals that the criminal justice system is severe and to society that they are safe from offenders. Punishment is also projected to recuperate offenders from their past life and prevent the criminal justice system from having continuous association with rehabilitated offenders. By reducing...
Words: 507 - Pages: 3
...Sentencing Paper Tushar Vincent Botlero 12 March 2012 CJ/A-234 Melissa Andrewjeski Sentencing Paper Punishment has been a subject of deliberate among philosophers, political leaders, and lawyers for centuries. Various theories of punishment have been developed, each of which attempts to justify the practice in some form and to state its proper objectives. The quantity and severity of punishments were reduced, the prison system have been improved. According to the Montgomery County Correctional Facility, Maryland, some of the major reasons for punishment are to reform, deterrence, rehabilitation, compensation, and retribution. Punishment for reform is intended to benefit the offender and society by changing the offender into a contributor to society. Punishment as deterrence is intended to benefit society by discouraging would-be offenders. Punishment to extract compensation is intended to benefit the victim of the offender. Finally, retribution is the only object for punishment that is primarily intended to harm the offender. Individuals are in prison because they broke the rules and would have to serve their time. Some go to federal prison and some go to state prisons. It depends on the type of crime that a person commits because these prisons harbor different types of criminals they also have different guidelines to follow in terms to punishing the inmates. Criminal offenders who benefit from prevention services and are at risk of committing...
Words: 1251 - Pages: 6
...Sentencing Paper University of Phoenix FOUNDATIONS OF THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM CJS/200 March 25, 2012 Sentencing Paper Sentencing is the imposition of a criminal by a judicial authority (Schmalleger pg 371). The five philosophical reasons for sentencing criminals are retribution, incapacitation, deterrence, rehabilitation, and restoration. The six forms of punishments are fines, community service, probation, imprisonment, parole, and capital punishment. The relationship between sentencing and punishment in today’s courts in my opinion are carried out efficiently and effectively. The five philosophical reasons for sentencing criminals are retribution, incapacitation, deterrence, rehabilitation, and restoration. Retribution is a form of taking revenge on a criminal. Retribution in the early days was an eye or an eye situation where now it can be perceived as the implementation of justice in the criminal justice system. Incapacitation, is imprisoning a criminal to reduce the odds that the criminal will commit more crimes in the future. Deterrence is the attempt to inhibit criminal activity by using the fear of punishment. Rehabilitation is the attempt to reform a criminal offender through education and psychological treatment to reduce the likelihood of future criminal activity (Schmalleger pg 375). Restoration is an attempt to make the victim whole again which in my opinion I would describe as making the victim feel secure that their perpetrator...
Words: 841 - Pages: 4
...line has remained the same: punish the criminals who commit certain crimes and ensure they remain in prison for a specified amount of time. Though these laws are logical, mandatory minimum sentencing, in all its forms, does not effectively reduce crime. Statement of Problem: Mandatory minimum sentencing is an obsolete and ineffective crime control policy that needs to be replaced. There are several reasons that these laws need to be repealed. The first of these is that the discretion is taken away from the judge and given to the prosecutor....
Words: 1743 - Pages: 7
...In most Federal Criminal cases, if a person is convicted, the sentence will be determined by using the United States Sentencing Guidelines. The Guidelines were created by the U.S. Congress in the 1980′s. The Guidelines were created with the goal of achieving uniformity in Federal criminal sentences across the United States. In other words, if you are convicted and sentenced for participating in a Federal drug conspiracy case in the Eastern District of Texas, your sentence should be substantially like that of a similarly situated person in another part of the country. The Guidelines are formulaic and they operate to calculate a prison term using several criteria. Broadly speaking, these can be broken down into several categories. 1. The nature of the crime 2. The accused person’s criminal history 3. Certain aggravating or mitigating factors that may or may not be present in a particular case. NATURE OF THE OFFENSE The place to begin the analysis is the “base offense level”, which may be found in Chapter 2 of the United States Sentencing Guidelines Manual. Each particular crime is assigned a base offense level. In drug conspiracy cases for example, the base offense level increases with the amount of drugs for which the accused person is responsible. CRIMINAL HISTORY The base offense level is only the first step. In order to properly analyze a likely Guidelines sentence, one must also determine the so called Criminal History Category of the accused...
Words: 742 - Pages: 3
...the Correction System The Principle Objectives of Punishment within the Correction System This analysis will cover several topics. The paper will compare objectives of punishment between state and federal. Another part of the discussion will cover how sentencing impacts the state and federal correction system. The last section will cover sentencing models. What are the state and federal objectives of Punishment? Each year thousands of individuals appear before a judge for sentencing of a crime one committed. Sentencing for felony offenses normally carries a punishment of incarceration of one year or more. Misdemeanors crimes carry incarceration sentencing of less than one year. Judges must review and consider complicated sentencing laws for each individual’s case, prior to sentencing. Judges of the 21 st century have less discretion in sentencing options than the past. There are mandatory minimum guidelines a judge must follow for sentencing. The judges must also follow the three-strike laws for repeated offenders. There are sentencing for some crimes that have little consideration to personnel factors regarding offenders, their crimes, and the victims. There are six general categories of sentencing under state penal codes that are available to judges for sentencing options. 1) Economic sanctions – offenders pay a fine or restitution to the victim or complete community service. These are standalone sentences without probation. 2) Probation- a prison sentence is suspended...
Words: 1056 - Pages: 5
