Essay On Disparity In Sentencing

According to Figure 2 we notice that women offenders are typically victims of previous abuse, whether it is physical, sexual, or emotional. Women who were hospitalized with prior psychiatric issues were found to be likelier than men to commit sexual offenses. We notice that women were found to also be more likely to have prior suicide attempts. The only instance where men have a greater percentage is the substance use history. Male offenders were found to be more likely than women to rely on substances (West 733).

Conclusion. There are some similarities and differences between the Mosaic Law and code of Hammurabi. Considering that the code of Hammurabi predates the Mosaic Law, it is logical to assume there is a possibility that Moses plagiarized or got ideas from Hammurabi. However, I believe that similarities do not prove plagiarism. Most of the similarities in the two sets of laws are limited to the fact that both codes address things like murder, stealing, adultery, kidnapping, etc., problems that every society must address.

Unfortunately, there are racial disparities in the United States in the legal system. Prison sentences imposed on African American males in the federal system are nearly 20 percent longer than white males convicted of similar crimes. The 1994 Crime Bill signed by President Clinton established mandatory minimum sentences. African American and Latino offenders sentenced in state and federal courts face greater odds of incarceration than white offenders who are in similar situations and receive longer sentences than whites in some jurisdictions. Research has shown that race plays a significant role in determination on which homicide cases resulted in death sentences.

Under these laws, the judge is required to sentence offenders to long prison terms if they have three felony convictions, sometimes they are sentenced to life without parole. However, research shows that mandatory minimum sentences and three strikes laws have little or no effect on reducing crime rates. But there is substantial evidence that they made sentences much longer, prison populations much larger, and incarceration rates much higher (4). For example, in

While people of affluence may still commit crimes, they have access to resources the working class do not (expensive legal representation) and often commit different types of crime (white collar versus street crime.) When punished, they commonly receive less time incarcerated for the same crime committed. Differential treatment towards minorities is apparent in OITNB, with prison life shown from the perspective of many women from very different class and racial backgrounds. Racist behaviour and mentality is exhibited towards inmates, with harsher punishments towards those of colour. Faced with trouble in prison, Sophia is sent to SHU despite being the victim of hate-crimes because she is the minority in the situation (being both a racial minority and transgender.)

Without proper identification of the different issues, the court may not be able to decide either bail or jail correctly. How to develop the fixed standard as to which variable or value shall be compared. The different cases shall have different story. The criminal footing may be different in every event and cases. The guidance to grant or refuse the bail can be drawn by the nature and seriousness of the offence, but the effect in the society cannot be easily identified.

States that do not use Capital Punishment usually have a lower murder rate than states that do. The South, where 80 percent of all executions take place, has a higher murder rate than the North. People wouldn't want to go to prison where anything can happen. The inmates at prison hate it because they basically have no life in prison. The death penalty makes society more dangerous by further increasing violence through the brutalization effect.

And when the defendant was convicted, the criminal was either released or given light sentences, just like Brock Turner who made headlines in the "Stanford Rape Case." I believe that men, as well as women, are raped and sexually abused and are scared to come forward. However, women hold the higher percentage of victims and rarely see justice. Another factor that is preposterous to me is that according to Cooper-White, in sexual violence cases, women and men are generally sentenced the same. I adamantly believe that men and women should not be sentenced the same based on the crime and all factors should be accounted for.

According to the Bureau of Justice, weapon arrests are 5 times greater for blacks compared to whites; numbers reading 69 for whites and 430 for blacks. Progressives will argue that the disparity reflects on the institutional racism in the criminal justice system. Others say the disparity is due to the fact that black people are disproportionately more likely to commit such crimes. There 's truth to both, yet there 's no disputing the figures. Much of it comes down to professional discretion.

and while race issues are still prevalent they have become better. Segregation is no longer widespread and common and while it can still happen it is usually unintentional. Criminal justice is the “new” way to target the minority races and segregate them from the white. Blacks are sentenced to 10% longer sentences than their white counterparts based on the same crime. 12.6% of the U.S. population is African American, but in prison they make up 37.1% of the inmate population.

Communities of color were targeted for crimes and given larger prison sentences than their white counterparts. In the Rockefeller Drug Reform of 2009, the racial disparities significantly decreased in the early periods following the reform (Parsons, Wei, Henrichson, Drucker, & Trone, 2015). Black and Hispanic individuals, in 2008 were three-times more likely than whites to receive a prison sentence; by 2010, black and Hispanic individuals were only twice as likely to be charged than whites. Although this is still an issue that needs to be addressed, it is a significant accomplishment compared to previous years. There is still said to be harmful biases in the criminal justice system (Parsons, Wei, Henrichson, Drucker, & Trone,

Also race and gender plays a big factor when sentencing offenders. For example, in the book it states that African Americans receive harsher sentences on average than white or Asian American offenders and males have a longer sentencing than females. This is just causing people to be in jail who shouldn’t really be there and this is also the reason why jails are overpopulating. Someone who has possession of drugs should not be going to jail longer than someone who committed murder. Our system of sentencing isn’t so rational and fair when it comes to sentencing.

Research shows that African Americans and Hispanics are often charged longer sentences and are convicted of crimes that only require mandatory minimum sentencing far more than Whites. While some believe that the system is racist and unfair, others argue that the high rates of incarceration of these ethnic groups reflect their crime rates and not

Incarcerated women have also shown a strong link between childhood abuse and adult mental health problems. A 2006 study supported the notion that greater exposure to childhood adverse situations were associated with behavioral problems as well as mental health problems (Daniel, 2007). Incarcerated women have a higher incidence of mental health disorders than the general population. For example, 12 percent of females in the general population have symptoms of a mental health disorder compared to 73 percent of females in state prison, 61 percent in federal prisons, and 75 percent in local jails (Daniel, 2007). Most incarcerated women do not receive treatment or assistance for these problems and are unlikely to meet goals of mental stability without the help of prison resources.

Gerrymandering is one of those issues that is a problem and the legislature would need to fix this by changing electoral districts, it may have made sense at one time but not now. Some of the problems within the judicial branch are setting laws for lower courts, the problem with this as with the other branches are that no everyone will agree with decisions or bills or laws being brought to the table, they may seem unfair or