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Overview of Mandatory Sentencing

NCJ Number
97113
Date Published
1983
Length
6 pages
Annotation
This examination of empirical information on mandatory sentencing in four States with different forms of such sentencing considers (1) whether mandatory sentencing has enhanced deterrence; (2) how mandatory minimum sentencing has affected the police and the courts; (3) whether mandatory sentencing means more predictable, just, or severe punishment; and (4) whether more people have been imprisoned because of mandatory sentencing.
Abstract
Data pertained to firearms acts in Massachusetts, Michigan, and Florida and New York's 1973 drug law. Mixed findings resulted from studies of the laws' deterrence effects. Gun crime declined in Massachusetts, although the use of other weapons in the commission of offenses increased. The law was not responsible for the observed decline in violent crime in Detroit, and results were unclear in Florida. The scope of the law, the extent of coordination in the criminal justice system, and the evaluation techniques used may have produced these varying results. In both Massachusetts and New York, mandatory sentencing laws tended to increase the importance of police actions and arrest decisions; the courts were affected more than any other part of the criminal justice system. Court case processing time and backlogs have increased, perhaps because the increased probability of imprisonment has encouraged defendants to demand trials and appeal convictions, especially if plea bargaining is statutorily restricted. Mandatory sentencing also produced more predictable and severe penalties as well as increased the use of scarce prison space. The need for comprehensive coordination of the entire criminal justice system and the limitations imposed by resource constraints were underscored. Two figures are included.