Race and Sentencing (From Criminal Justice System: Politics and Policies, Seventh Edition, P 352-365, 1998, George F. Cole and Marc G. Gertz, eds. -- See NCJ-185991)

• NCJ Number: 186007
• Author(s): Samuel Walker; Cassia Spohn; Miriam DeLone
• Date Published: 1998
• Length: 14 pages
• Sale Source: Wadsworth Publishing Co
• Publication Format: Book (Softbound)
• Publication Type: Collected Work
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: Samuel Walker, Cassia Spohn, and Miriam DeLone, The Color of Justice(Belmont, Calif.: Wadsworth, 1996), pp. 151-175.

Annotation

Questions about racial bias in the sentencing process have been a major concern for decades, and the authors contend clear and convincing evidence exists of racial disparity in sentencing and they provide possible explanations for such bias.

Abstract

Despite dozens of studies investigating the relationship between defendant race and sentence severity, a definitive answer to the question of whether racial minorities are sentenced more harshly than whites remains elusive. Many studies have provided evidence of racial discrimination in sentencing, while others have found there are no significant racial differences or have indicated blacks are sentenced more leniently than whites. The failure of research to produce uniform findings of racial discrimination in sentencing has led to conflicting conclusions. Some researchers assert that racial discrimination in sentencing has declined over time and that the predictive power of race, once relevant legal factors are taken into account, is quite low. Other researchers claim that racial discrimination has not declined or disappeared but has simply become more subtle and difficult to detect. These researchers argue that discrimination against racial minorities is not universal but rather is confined to certain cases, settings, and defendants. The authors believe this latter explanation is convincing and suggest the sentencing process in most jurisdictions is not characterized by overt or systematic racism. Even so, racial discrimination in sentencing has not been eliminated and sentencing decisions in the 1990's reflect contextual discrimination. Judges in some jurisdictions continue to impose harsher sentences on black defendants who murder or rape whites and more lenient sentences on black defendants who victimize other blacks. Further, judges in some jurisdictions continue to impose racially biased sentences in less serious cases and, in such cases, blacks usually get prison while whites get probation. In other words, judges continue to take race into account, either explicitly or implicitly, when determining the appropriate sentence. 48 notes, 1 table, and 2 figures