NCJ Number
119984
Journal
Criminal Justice Research Bulletin Volume: 4 Issue: 6 Dated: (1989) Pages: 1-7
Date Published
1989
Length
7 pages
Annotation
This article argues that criminal justice decision-making should be restructured through the use of lap-top computers. Restructuring would improve the quality of criminal justice decision-making and is both feasible and desirable.
Abstract
The human process of computation, making use of the technologies provided by computers, is discussed in detail. Criminal justice decisions derive from facts and moral assumptions which could be assigned values and programmed into computers. The article anticipates criticism of computer-based experimental structured decision-making by the legal profession but points out several reasons why a structured system would improve criminal justice decision-making. First, the structured system would increase the amount of information used in making decisions. Second, the system would increase the amount of information exchanged between decision-makers. Additionally, the process would increase the insight of decision-makers into their own methods of making decisions and thus increase consistency.