Sentencing Principles in Theory and Practice (From Crime and Justice: A Review of Research, Volume 22, P 363-433, 1997, Michael Tonry, ed. -- See NCJ-166203)

• NCJ Number: 166211
• Author(s): R S Frase
• Date Published: 1997
• Length: 71 pages
• Sale Source: University of Chicago Press
• Publication Type: Research (Theoretical)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: Preliminary version of article presented at a conference on Crime, Punishment, and Mental Health: Soundings for the Twenty- First Century, 1994, University of Chicago Law School

Annotation

In the "limiting retributivist" theory of punishment advanced by Norval Morris, considerations of just deserts set upper and occasionally lower limits on sentencing severity.

Abstract

Other purposes, including general deterrence, equality, and parsimony, provide the necessary fine tuning. Proponents of just deserts, such as Andrew von Hirsch, give much greater weight to retributive and equality values and allow almost no role for other sentencing goals in determining individual sentence severity. Relative sentence severity should be closely linked to just deserts, and parsimony should only be considered in determining issues such as overall severity of the sentencing scale. Minnesota's sentencing guidelines have been in effect since 1980 and are based on the just deserts theory; they also give substantial weight to utilitarian sentencing purposes. The 15 years of experience with sentencing guidelines in Minnesota shows that the theory of punishment advanced by Norval Morris is both theoretically sound and practically viable. 63 references and 1 figure