Exam 1 (ch.2) Flashcards
The imposition of a criminal sanction by a judicial authority
Sentencing
. Crime that is punishable by a year or more of incarceration
Felony
Crimes that are punishable by less than a year of incarceration
Misdemeanors
The suspension of criminal process while the offender is provided the chance to participate in treatment programs and avoid further criminal activity
Minor offenders and misdemeanor crimes
Voluntary
Ideally results in charge dismissal
Pretrial Diversion
Detaining an accused person in jail to protect the community from crimes he or she is likely to commit if set free pending trial
Justified by the 1984 Comprehensive Crime Control Act
Preventive Detention
The pledge of money or property in exchange for a promise to return for further criminal processing
Bail
A person who is legally liable for the conduct of another; someone who guarantees the accused person’s appearance in court
Surety
Release from jail based only on the defendant’s promise to appear for further court procedures
Release on Recognizance (ROR)
A program started in the 1960s to assist judges in identifying individuals who were good candidates to be released on their own recognizance without commercial or monetary bond
Manhattan Bail Project(MBP)
Supervision of offenders released on their own recognizance, similar to supervision while on probation
Supervised pretrial release (SPTR) programs
An agreement in which the defendant enters a plea of guilty in exchange for a reduced sentence in comparison to the sentence allowable for the charged offense
Plea Bargaining
A report used during the sentencing process that details the background of a convicted offender, including criminal history, social background, education, employment, mental and physical health, and other significant factors
Presentence Investigation (PSI)
A requirement that an offender pay a fine or restitution to the victim as a part of his or her sentence
Economic Sanction
An economic sanction used when offenders do not have funds from which to pay a fine or make restitution; referred to as a “fine on their time”, so that indigent offenders do not have to serve prison or jail time merely because they lack the fiscal ability to pay a fine
Community Service
A prison sentence that is suspended on the condition that the offender follows certain prescribed rules and commits no further crimes
Probation
Midrange dispositions that fall between probation and imprisonment
Intermediate Sanctions
A sentence in a jail for one year or less
Short-term confinement
A sentence in a prison of one year or more
Imprisonment
Punishment for the most serious crimes (generally first-degree murder); most states and the federal government provide for the death penalty
Capital Punishment
Sentences that run at the same time
Concurrent Sentences
Sentences that run one after another
Consecutive sentences
Sentences that have a minimum and maximum time to serve; decision by a release authority determines the actual time served within that range
Rehabilitative form of sentence
Intermediate Sentences
Requires completion of 85% of the sentence before prisoners are eligible for release
Truth in sentencing
sentences of fixed terms
Truth in sentencing
Good time
Determinate sentencing
Affords inmates the opportunity to reduce their eligibility for release by good behavior in prison
Good Time
Judges have primary discretion in creating the sentence
Judicial form of sentencing
administrative bodies (correctional officials and parole/release boards) have primary discretion in granting good time and determining the release time of offenders
Administrative form of sentencing
Legislative bodies create very structured sentencing codes, and therefore have primary discretion in the length of time served by offenders (statutes, laws, max and mins)
Legislative form of sentencing
A requirement that for certain crimes or for certain types of offenders, there must be a sentence to prison for at least a minimum term
Mandatory minimum sentences
A legislative mandate that judges sentence third-time felons to extremely long or life prison sentences (habitual offender supplement, Habitual 1 and so on) (doubles the guidelines for every habitual sentence)
Three-strike laws
A predetermined range of minimum, average, and maximum term for a specific crime for a “typical” offender, with allowances for mitigating and aggravating circumstances to be considered
Presumptive sentencing
Structured sentences, based on measures of offense severity and criminal history, to determine the length of the term of imprisonment
Sentencing guidelines
Expert and nonpolitical groups appointed by government officials, but with the purpose to take politics out of the sentencing decision and to consider the impact of sentences on overall costs and crime policies for the state
Sentencing Commissions
An alternative to traditional court models to deal with the underlying drug problem as the basis of the offenders’ criminality
Drug courts
