Study data were obtained from a 1991 survey of the legislature using a questionnaire that contained four main parts: information on lawmakers' backgrounds, experiences, and perceptions of the crime problem; questions that measured attitudes toward crime causation and control; questions that focused on attitudes toward capital punishment; and items that obtained lawmakers' views on criminal justice policy proposals. Responses were obtained from 129 of 211 New York State legislators, a response rate of 61 percent. Findings showed that three characteristics of New York State lawmakers--party affiliation, urbanism, and crime control ideology--consistently related to their positions on capital punishment, handgun control, and parole system expansion. The authors contend that a better understanding of the relationship between ideology and criminal justice policy has such benefits as improved public policy development, more effective monitoring of criminal justice legislation, and enhanced communication between lawmakers and their constituents. 36 references, 8 notes, and 4 tables