Top-Rated Free Essay
Preview

Determinate Sentencing vs. Indeterminate Sentencing

Satisfactory Essays
334 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Determinate Sentencing vs. Indeterminate Sentencing
Jeron
April 8 2013
Assignment #7
Determinate sentencing vs. Indeterminate sentencing
First of all, choosing amongst the two types of sentencing, indeterminate or determinate, really depends on the questions, what the crime is and is the crime violent or non-violent? If the crime is only non-violent such as fraud, then determinate sentencing would be the right fit for the suspects but if the crime that had occurred is murder, kidnapping, or other violent crimes, then the suspects would fall under indeterminate sentence.
Now, according to NYC Criminal Defense Attorney, “The purpose of indeterminate sentencing is to prevent the defendant from violent behavior while incarcerated by giving them the power to determine his/her release date.” This means that criminals that have part 1 offense would more likely to be locked up in order to provide the community a safer grounds. I like this type of sentencing better than determinant sentencing due to the fact that it not just protects us but it also reduces the crime that would occur in the same or possibly a different area.
Alternatively, determinant sentencing has a “fixed term of punishment for a criminal offense.” This means that suspects that are being sentenced with this type usually did not cause any harmful offense. I also like this type of sentencing because from a small type of crime we do not make a huge deal out of it, trusting the suspects on not doing the same crime again.
Ultimately, I would advocate indeterminate sentencing for suspects that caused part 1 offenses while I would advocate determinate sentencing for suspects that only caused part two offenses. Of course, many will probably disagree with this assertion but one thing is for sure, without the proper use of sentencing, our community would be far more dangerous than before.
Bibliography
1. "What Is The Difference Between Determinate Sentencing and Indeterminate Sentencing In New York State Criminal Court?" New York City Criminal Attorneys RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Apr. 2013.

Bibliography: 1. "What Is The Difference Between Determinate Sentencing and Indeterminate Sentencing In New York State Criminal Court?" New York City Criminal Attorneys RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Apr. 2013.

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    A longer prison sentence is nothing but a joke to the common criminal, with jails and prisons being so “comfortable” now. Any criminal that keeps his or her head down and their nose clean can get any sentence cut in half for “good behavior.” Not to mention the entire system is too crowded as is and society knows it.…

    • 316 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Better Essays

    minimum term, as opposed to leaving the length of punishment up to judges” ( US Legal).…

    • 1480 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    The United States Sentencing Commission is responsible for sentencing policy in federal courts. In 1980 they reformed the federal sentencing. The intent was to provide determinate sentencing. Determinate sentencing is a fixed period of incarceration without the possibility of parole, but time served can be reduced by accumulating good time. “Coinciding with the development of determinate sentencing has been the development of sentencing guidelines to control and structure the process and make it more rational. Guidelines are usually based on the seriousness of a crime and the background of an offender: The more serious the crime and the more extensive the offender’s criminal background, the longer the prison term recommended by the guidelines.” (Segel & Senna 2006). These guidelines were designed to eliminate judicial discretion and get tough on crime.…

    • 602 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The sentencing system should not be altered, for decreasing the focus and increasing the frequency of sentencing would do more harm than good. An emphasis on merely punishment and retribution in criminal sentencing would prevent the right of an offender to a fair trial. Furthermore, set and compulsory sentencing ignores personal circumstances, which in some cases could make all the difference. With these aggravating factors, hardening the system of law will not bring any advantages to society.…

    • 697 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Keeping in mind the brief overview of each of the major rationales for sentencing will allow the following four arguments to be understood with greater clarity. To begin, the first argument to support the urgent need to restructure the criminal justice system is the effect and impact of mandatory minimum sentencing on the high rates of incarcerations. The effects of mandatory minimum sentencing are staggering, and transcend into many different areas of the criminal justice system. The principal justification for the creation of mandatory minimum sentences is that by increasing the likelihood of custody, it will be a strict deterrent for crime prevention and a response to political “tough on crime” strategies. It was also thought to minimize…

    • 1521 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Determinate sentencing can take two forms: legislatively determined or judicially determined. In either case, the offender is sentenced to a specific term of incarceration. He or she is released at the expiration of the term, minus good time credits if they are available. There is no discretionary parole release, although there may be a period of supervision in the community. Under a legislatively determined structure, the legislature fixes by law the penalty for specific offenses or offense categories. In a judicially determined system, the judge has broad discretion to choose a sanction, but, once…

    • 423 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Punishment may sound like painful word, but in fact it is nothing more but a consequence given to a criminal offender. The state and federal correction system have similar objectives for criminal offenders as a form of punishment. Due to request for harsher punishment, sentencing affects both the state and federal correction system. Upon pleading or finding an offender guilty, the determinate and indeterminate sentencing model is implied in which the federal and state correctional system assigns to criminals for time given in prison.…

    • 939 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    To me Indeterminate Sentencing is a very degraded and/or very disturbed type of sentencing. In this sentencing a legislature is the one who has say as to what the terms will be for the crime that has been committed and a judge gets the decision as to what the sentence will be for the offender. As I look at this information I feel that the judge should have a say in what the sentence will be, but not have all the power as to what it will be. A Parole Board gets to determine as to what the amount of time is that the offender will spend in prison for the crime he or she has committed. In this type of sentencing, one of the guidelines is that when determining the sentence it should meet all of the needs of the offender.…

    • 1106 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Indeterminate sentencing – what and why? 9. Determinate sentencing- what and why? 10.…

    • 500 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Today in our country our justice system runs by two models in order to keep peace and order to the public the first model is the determinate sentencing model what the Determinate model is when the judge is about to pass a sentence on to defendant and to address the problem with crimes that has been going around since the 1980s for example the government of some states in our country passed the three strike laws where when someone commits a crime that is considered serious then they get harsher sentences and to tell people who are more likely to commit the crime to don’t do it and it is not worth it . One of the pros for the determinate sentencing model is that the defendant could be eligible for probation, parole and alternative programs…

    • 841 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Even though incarceration should be about rehabilitating prisoners and releasing them back into society as productive members, unfortunately it has become about politics. Those running for office always want to appear to be tough on crime, and indeterminate sentencing appears to some to be too soft. Allowing prisoners to earn their freedom before they have served their maximum sentence is not punishment in the eyes of those that believe prisoners should be locked up and made to do hard…

    • 825 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    To address the question as to what style of sentencing guidelines I would prefer to be used within my state, I would have to sway towards indeterminate sentencing. The end goal is to rehabilitate those who enter the prison system for crimes they have committed. For most, they will eventually reenter society after completing their respective prison sentence. The hope is that those incarcerated have completed rehabilitative programs and can now be productive members of society. We as a society need to understand that law enforcement simply can’t arrest their way out of all the crimes committed on a daily basis. Additionally, each person’s situation should be examined separately. This includes examining the crime committed, the person’s criminal…

    • 185 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    With a determinate sentence the convicted person is given a sentence that has a defined length to be served and cant’ be changed by a parole board or any other agency but may reduced by factors such as “good time”. While with an indeterminate sentence it consists of a range of the years that will be served. There is always a minimum sentence but the release date if any is uncertain. It is determined by a parole board when it periodically reviews the case, and could be given the possibility for parole. The problems that criminals with mental health problems face with determinate sentencing are the parole chance. The fact that there is no chance of parole with determinate sentencing makes it hard for the individual to get treatment for his or her disorder. Being in prison is a harsh place and with the fact that a individual with mental health problems is put into a penitentiary without getting help just add fuel to the fire making it harder and harder for them to recover. Also there is no probation given because they are sent straight to jail or prison were they are told to serve an exact time, which then leads to no chance of actual treatment for the individual. With prevention being one of the main goals of determinate sentencing it also leads to a chance of greater occurrence after the individual being released. Yes they are preventing crimes from happening while the criminal is incarcerated but what about when he’s released? He still has the same mental problems as before if they haven’t increased. They are given little to no treatment to help their mental problems therefore increasing the possibility of reoccurrence later. I believe that if a criminal with mental health issues is being served with a determinate sentence that he or she should first spend a set amount of time in a mental hospital until progress has been made and been noted as being safe to serve out the rest of his sentence in a prison or…

    • 344 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Goals Of Sentencing

    • 626 Words
    • 3 Pages

    For instance, retribution is focused on retaliation; and is not particularly concerned with mitigating future crime. In contrast, deterrence is focused on preventing future crime, but its effectiveness as a general deterrence remains unproven. Likewise, rehabilitation is aimed at preventing future crime, but historically, it has failed to mitigate crime rates. On the other hand, incapacitation seeks to deprive the offender of his ability to commit future crimes, but, suggests, that offenders are incorrigible. The aforementioned sentencing goals are related to distinct sentencing models. These include determinate sentencing, where “state statues determine the length of incarceration” (Zhang, et al, 2014, 694); and indeterminate sentencing, which sets a range of time of confinement, which is dependent of the offenders conduct while incarcerated. Sentencing models are usually accompanied concurrent and or consecutive sentences. Under concurrent sentences, and offender serves a prescribed amount of time of confinement for multiple crimes committed together. In contrast, consecutive sentences require offenders to serve jail sentences for each crime separately, one after the…

    • 626 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Sentencing Philosophies

    • 353 Words
    • 1 Page

    The factors that go into determining sentencing are broke into three steps. The Legislature passes sentencing Laws; this specifies the terms of indeterminate sentencing. An Indeterminate term of incarceration is in which a judge determines the minimum and maximum terms of imprisonment. Only a jury can hand down the decision of the death penalty. When the minimum term is reached the prisoner becomes eligible to be paroled. Then there is determinate sentencing, this is a period of incarceration that is fixed by a sentencing authority and cannot be reduced by judges or other corrections officials. A factor that can change incarceration time is that of “good time”, this is when a reduction in time served by a prisoner is based on good behavior and other positive actions. This is said to promote discipline…

    • 353 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays

Related Topics