NCJ Number
78723
Date Published
1980
Length
61 pages
Annotation
Commissioned by the Alaska legislature, this study examined sentences imposed by all State superior courts between 1976 and 1979 and found that Alaskan native and black defendants were likely to suffer disadvantages ultimately reflected in longer sentences and a reduced likelihood of probation.
Abstract
The Advisory Committee on Minority Judicial Sentencing Practices was established by the Alaska legislature in 1979 in response to a 1978 report from the Judicial Council which identified significant sentencing disparities directly related to race. The committee discovered several elements in the criminal justice process exerting a cumulative impact on the sentencing decision. Minority defendants tend to spend more time in pretrial detention than others and are denied release on their own recognizance more frequently. Poor communications between minority defendants and police officers, public defenders, probation officers, and judges place minorities at a comparative disadvantage at every stage of the legal process. Minority representation is disproportionately low in all State criminal justice agencies. A review of presentence reports involving white, black, and Alaskan native defendants revealed that favorable or positive information often was not included in reports for minority individuals. The lack of State sentencing guidelines also contributes to disparity. The connection between alcohol and criminal offenses is particularly strong among Alaskan natives, but the State has not provided adequate treatment programs for persons afflicted with alcoholism and drug addiction. Inadequate funding of the Alaska Public Defender Agency has deprived minorities of quality legal services. Another factor contributing to higher incarceration rates for minorities is the lack of alternative correctional programs. The committee suggested that Alaska expand the use of lay magistrates on the English model, amend certain provisions of the sentencing law effective in January 1980, and increase the use of pretrial diversion for nondangerous first offenders. Implications of the new law for post conviction relief are also discussed. The report's format provides a summary of each finding, followed by corrective recommendations and a discussion of the issues involved.