Measuring the Severity of Criminal Penalties - Provisional Results

• NCJ Number: 92954
• Author(s): J E Jacoby; E C Ratledge
• Date Published: 1982
• Length: 19 pages
• Grant Number(s): 80-IJ-CX-0032
• Sponsoring Agency: National Institute of Justice (NIJ); US Dept of Justice NIJ Pub
• Corporate Author: Jefferson Institute for Justice Studies
• Sale Source: National Institute of Justice/; NCJRS Photocopy Services
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

A severity scale with bands of equivalent sanctions will be a useful tool for prosecutors and public defenders seeking to improve their efficiency.

Abstract

This paper presents an approach for developing measurement techniques and discusses a severity scale to be used in a system of weighted dispositions. It is simplistic to assume that the work of prosecutors and defense counsel can be described by their conviction or acquittal rates. These rates do not indicate the multiplicity of the functions carried out, do not show the quality of the dispositions obtained, and give no information to those who would evaluate effectiveness. Conviction rates mask the effort needed to obtain convictions. The means of disposing of a case is a critical factor in determining manpower needs. If sanctions are classified by their level of severity, the identification of a set of equivalent sanctions will permit the prosecutor or public defender to choose a cost-efficient and qualitatively acceptable course. The penalties in this study were similar to those found in actual cases. The research used sets of sentences to which prosecutors assigned a number between 1 and 10. The preliminary results indicate that the development of criminal penalty scales can be useful and warrant further research. Tables and eight references are provided.