Mandatory Sentencing

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Mandatory sentencing is not anything new. It began in the 1970s. The main purpose for mandatory sentencing was to try to get rid of the drug lords and to eliminate most of the nation’s street drug selling. It was to impose that the same crime would have the same sentence all over the nation. Some of the negatives that rose from mandatory sentencing were nonviolent drug offenders and first time offenders who were receiving harsh sentences. Inmate populations and correction costs increased and pushed states to build more prisons. Judges were overloaded with these cases, and lengthy prison terms were mandated to these young offenders. Mandatory sentencing is an interesting topic in which I would like to discuss my opinions in going against mandatory sentencing. I will show the reasons for this topic, as well as give you my personal brief on which I support. To begin, Mandatory minimum sentences result in prison overcrowding, and based on several studies, it does not alleviate crime, for example crimes such as shoplifting or solicitation. These sentencing guidelines do not allow a judge to take into consideration the first time offender, differentiate the deviance level of the offender, and it does not allow for the judge to alter a punishment or judgment to each individual case. When mandatory sentencing came into effect, the drug lords they were trying to stop are not the ones being affected by the sentences. It is the nonviolent, low-level drug users who are overcrowding the prisons as a result of these sentences. Both the U.S. Sentencing Commission and the Department of Justice have determined that mandatory sentencing is not an effective way to deter crime. Studies show that mandatory minimums have gone downhill due to racial a... ... middle of paper ... ... OUT OF GET TOUGH JUSTICE? Criminology & Public Policy, 5(1), 37-43. Retrieved December 6, 2010, from Criminal Justice Periodicals. (Document ID: 1016637721). DELIBERATING CRIME AND PUNISHMENT: A WAY OUT OF GET TOUGH JUSTICE? Criminology & Public Policy, 5(1), 37-43. Retrieved November 23, 2010, from Criminal Justice Periodicals. (Document ID: 1016637721). Oct 1993. Retrieved November 18, 2010. Vol. 79. 134 pages (Document ID: 0747-0088) Published by American Bar Association Mandatory Sentencing Laws and Drug Offenders in New York State. Retrieved November 15, 2010, from http://www.drugpolicy.org/library/factsheets/mandatory_ny.cfm. Compiled by Anonymous , The Correctional Association of New York. March 1999. Cindy Swirko. (2010). Florida drug sentences too harsh? Retrieved November 15, 2010 from http://www.gainesville.com/article/20100814/articles/8141011.

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