SENTENCING GUIDELINES

The Impact of Sentencing Guidelines

Abstract

Criminal justice, like all other social institutions represents the value system of a society. It not only make this society a safer and healthier place to live in but also fights undesired behavior, which might corrupt the societal fabric. US recently became the country with the highest number of prisoners and the highest imprisonment rate in the world. However, this high level of incarceration is not due to an unusually high crime rate but because of the country's austere sentencing guidelines, policies, and practices that have been developed to restrain the increasing crime rate. This strict stance towards offenders, however, has not turned out to be as effective as the preventive and rehabilitative approaches used by other nations.

Table of Contents

Abstractii

Introduction1

Criminal Justice in US1

Discussion1

Goal of Sentencing1

Different Types of Sentences2

Death Penalty2

Incarceration3

Probation3

Boot Camps4

House Arrest and Electronic Monitoring4

Fines4

Restitution4

Community Service5

Scarlet-Letter Punishments5

Asset Forfeiture5

Sentencing Issues in Criminal Justice5

Impact of Constitutional Rights on Criminal Sentencing Guidelines6

Conclusion7

References8

Bibliography9

The Impact of Sentencing Guidelines

Introduction

Criminal Justice in US

A criminal justice system is a form of official social control, brought into practice for the purpose o maintaining a social order in the broader societal system. Criminal justice is a process that involves steps from the beginning of a criminal investigation and ending with the sentencing or release of a convicted offender from correctional supervision. The most prominent feature of American criminal justice system recently has been the increase in incarceration rates during the late 1970s to the 1990s. This was due to the crime wave since the 1960s and political chaos, which lead to increase in the reporting behavior, prosecution, and the least mandatory sentence law (Savelsberg, 1994).

Discussion

Goal of Sentencing

According to Regoli & Hewitt (2009), the goal of crime reduction along with punishment and incapacitation are targeted by the sentencing guidelines in the US judicial system. The basic goal of all criminal sentencing is to reduce the deviance of members of a society from the accepted behavior, and thus, maintain a healthy society. However, the goals of sentencing may differ according to the deterrence of the offender, need for rehabilitation, and positive confirmation of the legal norms in the public, and retribution.

Sentencing goals also differ with regard to if punishment should be meted out for justice, to condemn the offense of the lawbreaker, for deterrence to decrease the likelihood of additional offences, to keep offending levels within acceptable bounds, or to restore the state of equality.

There are six types of sentencing goals, which are currently followed by the - US criminal justice system

1.Retribution of Guilt - The offender should undergo a penance comparative to his guilt.

2.Deterrence of the actual offender - The offender should be discouraged from committing more felonies.

3.Rehabilitation - The criminal should be helped to lead the life of a law-abiding citizen.

4.General deterrence - People should be deterred from indulging in similar crimes that we see every day.

5.General positive prevention - The penalty of the lawbreaker should strengthen the awareness of legal norms in the public at large.

6.Compensation of harm done - The criminal should make recompense for ...