diversity (chapter 7,8,9)

constitutionality: death penalty

1. Gregg vs Georgia (1976) 1a. a jury convicted Gregg guilty of armed robbery and murder of two men and sentenced him to death 1b. Gregg claimed that his capital sentence wad a "cruel and unusual" punishment that violated the 8th amendment and 14th amendment 1c. in 7-2 decision, the court ruled that a punishment of death did not violate the 8th and 14th amendment; and if it was a properly applied/administered in a two-stage trial guided discretion to they jury 2. Atkins vs virginia (2002) 2a. the execution of individuals with "mental retardation" is unconstitutional 2b. execution constituted cruel and unusual punishment 3. roper vs. Simmons (2005) 3a. the execution of juveniles (anyone under the age of 18) was unconstitutional and a violation of the 8th and 14th amendments 4. 22 juveniles had been executed since 1976

empirical research: race and sentencing

1. 1930s-1960s studies 1a. concluded disparities = clear racial discrimination 1b. thorsten sellin (1935): "equality before the law is social fiction" 2. 1930s-1980s studies 2a. national research council panel on sentencing 2aa. concluded no systemic discrimination - a few cases of discrimination among a few judges, particular crime types, in particular settings 2b. marjorie zatz; concluded that race/ethnicity us a critical factor in sentencing/ punishment 3. punishment at federal and state levels of then judiciary 3a. hispanics and african Americans more likely than whites to 3aa. be sentenced to prison 3ab. receive longer sentence 4. process related factors of race/ethnicity on sentencing 4a. hiring a private attorney 4b. pleading guilty 4c. cooperation with prosecutors to testify as witnesses 4d. pre-trial detention 4e. prior records 4f. races of offender and victim

attitudes towards capital punishment

1. 1976 1a. 66% in US favored death for murder convictions 2. 1997 2a. 75% polled supported death penalty 3. 2010 3a. 61% polled supported death penalty 4. many researchers question poll results depending on 4a. specific case 4b. defendant character 4c. available punishment alternatives 5. recent polls 5a. majority of Americans think innocent are sometimes convicted 6. 2010 poll - support for the death penalty when offered alternative sentences 6a. 39% - life without parole plus restitution 6b. 33% - death penalty 6c. 13% - life without parole 6d. 9% - life with parole 7. 2007 Gallup poll 7a. in favor of death penalty 7aa. 70% of whites 7ab. 40% of african Americans 7b. many question death penalty's fairness 8. why racial differences in attitudes? 8a. stereotypes 8aa. apathy toward certain racial groups 8b. geographic (social context) 8ba. local politics 8bb. minority population numbers 8bc. homicide rates

death penalty fact sheet

1. 25 states have death penalty 1a. federal government and military have it 2. 3 states (PA, CA, OR) have moratorium 3. 22 states are non death penalty 4. top ten executing states since 1976 are 4a. texas 4b. virigina 4c. Oklahoma 4d. florida 4e. Missouri 4f. Georgia 4g. alabama 4h. ohio 4j. north Carolina 4k. South Carolina 5. 202- 17 state and 10 federal executions 6. number of execution since 1976 = 1532 7. defendants executed by race 7a. white = 854 (55.7%) 7b. black = 523 (34.1%) 7c. hispanic = 129 (8.4%) 7d. others = 26 (2%) 8. murder victims by race 8a. white = 854 (75%) 8b. black = 523 (16%) 8c. hispanic = 129 (7%) 8d. others = 26 (2%)

racial disparity in incarceration

1. 60% of the people in prison are now racial and ethnic minorities (US sentencing project) 2. 1 in every 10 blacks is in prison or jail on any given day 2a. this disproportionate incarceration is due to the "war on drugs" since the 1980s 3. in 2010, african Americans comprised 17% of all juveniles, but 31% of all arrests 4. in 2011, black youth were 269% more likely to be arrested for violating curfew laws than white youth

attitudes towards prisons

1. 6x as many african Americans as whites said that they would rather spend time in prison than be placed on intensive supervision probation (ISP) 1a. reason: programs were too hard on participants - they wanted to catch them and send them back to prison 1b. less willing to gamble on alternatives and more likely to choose prison instead

constitutionality of death penalty

1. 8th amendment 1a. prohibits "cruel and unusual punishments" 1aa. question of "cruelty" at issue 1b. dearth penalty has existed throughout history 1c. US Supreme Court has never ruled the death penalty is "cruel and unusual" 2. furman vs. Georgia (1972) 2a. Supreme Court ruled death penalty "unconstitutional" under existing administration practice 2aa. rules it as unconstitutional how it was applied and administered 2ab. 5-4 decision = "split decision" 2b. concluded serious risk of discriminatory application and arbitrary discretion by juries 2c. racial discrimination addressed by 3 out of 5 justices in the majority 3. impact? 3a. made application of death penalty difficult in most states since 1972 3b. many states adopted statuses narrowing discretion and mandating death penalty for certain specific offenses 4. bifurcated (two-stage trial) 4a. first stage = determine guilt or innocence 4b. second stage = determine sentence either death penalty or life (based on mitigating and aggravating factors) - guided discretion to the jury

asian Americans and sentencing length

1. Johnson and betsinger (1997-200 federal district courts) 2. asian Americans 2a. had less serious criminal histories 2b. were less likely to be detained prior to sentencing 2c. were less likely to be convicted of drug offenses 2d. were more likely to be convicted of fraud offenses 2e. more likely to be college graduates 2f. 35% less likely than whites to be sentenced to prison 2g. 37% less likely than african Americans to be sentenced to prison 2h. 80% less likely than hispanics to be sentenced to prison

immigration and crime

1. Scott Wolfe (2006) 1a. effect of citizens status on federal sentencing outcomes 1b. incarcerated rate highest for illegal aliens and resident-legal aliens than citizens 1c. however, sentence length was higher for citizens than nonwhite 1ca. illegal aliens had substantially lower sentences, likely a result to aid in deportation following expiration of sentence

why do young underemployed racial minorities pay a punishment penalty

1. Spitzer research 1a. social dynamite 1aa. viewed as particularly dangerous by others 1ab. young black males are more at risk to receive the harshest penalty 2. spohn and holleran 2a. young, unemployed, african American and hispanic males, are viewed as more dangerous, more threatening, and less amenable to rehabilitation; as a result, they are sentenced more harshly

intersectionality with gender and age

1. according to the sentencing project, between 1980 and 2019: 1a. the number of incarcerated women increased more than 700% 1b. a total of 26,387 (1980) to 222,455 in 2019 1ba. 24% of incarcerated women convicted of property crime (vs. compared to 16% incarcerated men) 1bb. women convicted fo drug offenses was 26% (vs. 13% of men) 2. the imprisonment rate for African American women (83 per 100,000) 2a. black women imprisoned over 1.7x the rate of white women (48 per 100,000) 2b. Latina women were imprisoned at 1.3x the rate of white women (63 vs 48 per 100,000)

racial discrimination in the sentencing of misdemeanor offenders

1. administrative factors make a difference 1a. tend to have large caseloads and summary trial 1b. informal and often "assembly line justice" 3. leiber and blowers research 3a. cases given priority: assault, stranger crime and offenders with criminal record 3b. cases with african American offenders more likely to get priority 3c. priority status affects outcome 3d. race has indirect effect on outcome

innocence project

1. as of 2010, 138 death row exonerations (185 as of 2021) with evidence of innocence 2. innocence project 2a. 17 people proven innocent and exonerated by the project. combined, they served 209 years in prison including 187 years on death row 2b. exonerations cross all levels of race and ethnicity 2c. Anthony graves (October 28th, 2010) 12th person exonerated from death row in Texas 2ca. served 18 years incarcerated, 16 years on death row 2cb. exponeren compensation policy 2cba. receive 80,000$ for each year a person was wrongfully convicted, as well as college tuition

mass incarceration

1. as of 2019, (328.2 million) U.S. population (2.2 million prisoners) - prison = 1.38 million; jail 745, 000 1a. 500% increase over the last 40 Yeats (since 1980) 1b. 4.4 million on probation and parole 1ba. 1,833 state prisons 1bb. 110 federal prisons ]1bc. 1,772 juvenile correctional facilities 1bd. 3,134 local jails 1be, 218 immigration detention facilities 1bf. 80 Indian country jails 1bg. military prisons 2. the negative effects of mass incarceration 2a. family disintegration 2b. reentry challenges 2c. neighborhood disorganizations 2d. recidivism (65% for violent and 40% for property offenses)

guided discretion to the jury in death penalty cases

1. at least one of the follow 10 aggravating circumstances, death may be recommended 1a. prior conviction of the defendant in felony cases 1b. when the defendant committing murder while committing other crimes such as rape, robbery, burglary, etc 1c. causing a risk of death to more than TWO people 1d. if the murder is committed for money 1e. if the murder victim was a judicial officer such as a judge or DA 1f. if the murder was committed as an agent and employee of another person 1g. if the offense is committed as horrible and inhuman, involving torture, etc 1h. if the victim is a police or correctional officer 1j. if the convicted defendant was an escapee from prison or detention facility 1k. if the offense was committed to avoid arrest or custody

civil rights of convicted felons

1. civil disability 1a. deprivation of rights of prisoners and former prisoners 2. 5.8 million Americans denied the right to vote because of laws that prohibit voting by people with a felony conviction 2a. 2014- 1/3 african Americans in the US are disenfranchised

Supreme Court and racial discrimination

1. constitutional challenges based on (1) 14th amendment - equal protection; and (2) empirical evidence (baldus study) in applying the death penalty 2. mccleskey vs. kemp (1987) 2a. addressed victim-based discrimination 2b. african American warren mccleskey convicted of killing white police officer during robbery 2c. mccleskey defense claimed discriminatory administration of capital sentencing process and provided studies on issue 3. court rejected mccleskey's argument, on the grounds that general trends 3a. defense did not prove the existence of discrimination among the jury who decided his particular case 4. mccleskey was executed by electrocution in 1991

charging and plea bargaining

1. crack cocaïne vs. powder cocaine 1a. US sentencing commission created the disparity in the 1980s 1a. five-year mandatory minimums became active at a 100:1 weight level (5 grams of crack cocaine vs 500 grams of powder cocasine) 2. 2010 US sentencing commission revised guideline 2a. five-year mandatory minimums became active at a 18:1 ration (28 grams of crack vs. 500 grams of powder coacine) 2b. ten-year mandatory minimum became active at 280 grams of crack vs. 1,000 grams of powder cocaine

the racial justice act

1. defense has to prove there is a bias and the state rebuts the evidence 2. defendants to challenge their death sentences by showing a patterns of racial discrimination in the capital sentencing 3. the state would be required to prove that its death penalty decisions were racially neutral 4. only Kentucky and North Carolina have enacted a racial justice act

racial minorities and cumulative disadvantage

1. disparities in sentencing may accumulate over time and over stages of criminal court processes 2. African Americans and latinos more likely to be detained prior to trial 3. they are more likely to receive less appealing plea offers 4. these patterns may exaggerate disparities in sentencing through cumulative effects

sexual assault

1. from 1930-1972 1a. 405 of the 453 US men executed for rape were african Americans 2. researcher over the last 20 years indicated 2a. african American men convicted of raping white women still face stiffer penalty 2b. criminal punishment today is still impacted by victim race and offender race

racial disparities in sentences imposed for drug offenses

1. human rights watch 1a. asserts the war is disproportionately wages against people of color, especially african Americans 1b. drug use for african Americans remains the same level, but the incarceration level (based on drug laws) is unfair 1c. african Americans constituted 626% of all drug offenders admitted to state prison in 1996 (in Maryland and Illinois- 90%)

unconscious racism

1. implicit bias

unprecedented commutation

1. in 2003, Illinois governor George Ryan 1a. commuted sentences of all 167 inmates on state's death row to "life in prison" 2. in 1994 Supreme Court justice Blackmun 2a. stated death penalty was arbitrary and racially discriminatory; would oppose future death sentences

a 21st century reality

1. in 2009, african Americans compromised 13% of the U.S. population, but 39.4% of all jail and prison inmates 2. hispanics were 15.8% of the U.S. population, but 20.7% of inmates incarcerated in jails and prisons 3. non hispanic whites made up 65.1% of the U.S. population, but only 34.4% of the jail and prison population

implicit bias

1. judges, like most other individuals, "harbor implicit bias" 2. found that 74 out of 85 white judges and 14 out of 43 african American judges demonstrated a "white preference"

the effect of race on sentencing for various types of crime

1. liberation hypothesis 1a. jurors step outside legal constraints and incorporate personal values if the evidence is weak or contradictory 1b. concerning sentencing 1ba. in more serious cases, the appropriate sentence is strongly determined by the seriousness of the crime and by the defendants prior criminal record 1bb. judges have more latitude and the more propensity for incorporating extralegal facts when the severity is lower 3. spohn and cederblom's research 3a. found race had a serious impact on incarceration decisions for less serious cases

racial disparity in sentencing

1. nation prison statistics 1a. hispanics, african Americans incarcerated more than whites (disproportionate to population size) 1b. hispanics and african Americans more likely to be sentenced than whites 1c. whites receive shorter sentences 1d. imprisonment on average for violent offenses was 108 months for african Americans and 99 months for whites (9 month difference) 2. 2009 rates 2a. 4,749 incarcerated of every 100,000 african American men 2b. 1,822 incarcerated of every 100,000 hispanic men 2c. 708 incarcerated of every 100,000 white men

native Americans and sentencing lengths

1. native Americans may be subject to "dangerous" and "drunken Indian" stereotypes 1a. arrest and alcohol-related offenses 2. wilmot and delone 2a. native Americans more likely than whites to have more severe "pronounced" sentences 2b. native Americas 10% more likely to be sentenced to prison than whites

race, ethnicity, and prison gangs

1. prison gangs play a significant role in prison life 2. aryan brotherhood 2a. whites, supremacists views, ongoing involvement in crime 3. black guerrilla family 3a. african Americans, marxist views, focus on dignity in prison 4. crips - mostly African Americans 5. bloods - mostly african americas 6. Mexican mafia 6a. Mexican Americans, ethnic pride, prison drug dealing 7. latin kings 7a. mostly hispanics 7b. MS-13 (mara salvatrucha) 7c. mostly hispanic Salvadorans

minority overrepresentation

1. race and ethnicity percentage in prison 2019: 1a. white; 60.1% population (prison population = 30%) = underrepresented 1b. hispanics; 18.5% population (prison population = 23%) = overrepresented 1c. black; 13% population (prison population = 33%) = overrepresented 1d. asians; 5.6% population (prison population 1.5%) = underrepresented 1e. American Indians/alaska native; 0.7% population (2.4% prison population) = overrepresented

the quest for "just punishment "

1. race/ ethnicity and federal sentencing guidelines 2. some numbers for drug offenses 2a. black and hispanics serve 20% longer than whites 2b. white hispanics serve 16% longer than nonwhite hispanics 3. Everett and Wojtkiewicz 3a. all minorities (except asian Americans) more likely than whites to be sentenced at top of range

Michelle Alexander (2010) the new Jim crow laws; mass incarceration in the age of colorblindness

1. racial caste system (segregated social groups) in the US 2. new jim crow due to mass incarceration, voting disenfranchisement, unemployment, poverty) 3. racial disparity in sentencing due to drug laws (crack-cocaine) 4. US is not color blind society 5. 1/3 blacks are under some kind of correctional supervision (prison, probation, parole, etc) 6. we avoid why or shy away public discussion on RACE and CLASS in the US

race, ethnicity, and recidivism

1. recidivism 1a. generally offenders return to offending post-punishment 1b. african Americans more likely to "return" across all levels based on a study in 2006 3. what does "return" mean 3a. arrested on new charge 3b. convicted again 3c. sentenced again 3d. parole revoked

race and religion

1. religion often provides (purpose) for inmates 1a. dominate culture may favor one religion 1b. 1960- american correctional association refused to recognize islam and banned koran 2. fuelwood vs. clemmer (1962) 2a. lawsuit ordered muslims in prison must be treated like any other religious group

when does race/ ethnicity matter?

1. research indicated federal sentencing decisions are influenced by 4 factors 2. 4 factors 2a. legally irrelevant offender factors 2aa. sex and employment status 2b. process related factors 2ba. pre-trial detention 2c. victim's race 2d. severity and nature of crime

sentencing

1. sentencing 1a. a judicial decision by a judge and a jury 2. sentencing is a punishment or sanction to restrict the individuals freedom or deprivation of life 2a. prison, probation, house arrest, death penalty, etc. 3. sentencing guidelines 3a. are written by the legislation branch for state and federal guidelines 4. sentencing strategies 4a. concurrent sentencing: served at the same time 4b. consecutive sentencing: served one after the other 4c. truth in sentencing: to make sure 85% of the time must be served 5. sentencing goals 5a. retribution 5b. deterrence 5c. incarceration 5d. rehabilitation 5e. restitution

5 explanations for racial disparity

1. serious crime and prior criminal records 1a. racial disparity but not racial discrimination (crack-cocaine) 2. indirect economic discrimination 2a. poverty and unemployment 3. institutional discrimination 3a. harsh sentences/ punishment policy as in "three-strikes" for habitual offenders (repeat offenders) 4. racial discrimination by judges 4a. racial bias or prejudice by judges against minorities 5. subtle or contextual discrimination 5a. in some contexts as in the nature of victimization, age, or gender of offender

differential treatment

1. significant historical evidence for differential treatment of interracial and interracial crime 2. Gunnar myrdal's (1930s) 2a. african Americans victimizing whites = severe punishment 2b. African Americans victimizing african americas = mild punishment/acquittal 2c. whites victimizing african Americans - acquittal 3, unreasonable fear of african American men raping white women

race/ethnicity, gender, age

1. spohn and delone 1a. found combining race/ethnicity, age, gender and employment variables gave better predictions of penalty than any one variable alone

direct and indirect effects

1. spohn and deluxe research 1a. evidence of racial discrimination in incarceration decisions in 1993-94 in Chicago, Miami, Kansas City 1b. race/ethnicity = no impact on sentence length 1c. evidence of economic discrimination 1d. concluded that judges sentencing decisions reflect "stereotypes of dangerousness and considerations of a offender race, gender, pretrial status, and willingness to plead guilty"

relationship between race and employment

1. stark difference between races 1a. white applicants with criminal records were more likely to receive job callbacks than african American applicants who did NOT have a criminal record

race and death penalty

1. statistical evidence of racial disparity 2. post-furman 2a. strong evidence indicates continued serious discrimination in death penalty application 3. GAO 1990 study 3a. found a "pattern of ... racial disparities in charging sentencing and imposition of death penalty after firman" 3b. also concluded race alone was not clearly the pivotal variable 4. death penalty decision in 8 states (1976-1980) 4b. AR, FL, GA, IL, MS, NC, OK, VA 4c. less chance of death for offender charged with killing african Americans 4d. greater chance of death for offender charged with killing whites 4e. greatest chance of death for african Americans charged with killing whites 4ea. 10:1 in Georgia and Mississippi 4eb. 8:1 (florida), 7:1 (Arkansas), 6:1 (illinois, Oklahoma and north Carolina) and 5:1 (virigina)

are hispanics sentenced more harshly than all other offenders

1. steffensmeier and remuth research 1a. hispanics are sentenced to prison more than whites or african Americans 1b. incarceration in non drug offenses 1ba. 66.8% for hispanics 1bb. 62.9% for african Americans 1bc. 46.2% for whites 1c. incarcerated rates for drug related offenses 1ca. 87.4% for hispanics 1cb. 69.9% for african Americans 1cc. 52.3% for whites

the baldus study: race and death penalty

1. the baldus study is based on sample over 2,000 murder cases of Georgia in the 1970s, and complied data relating to the victims race, the defendants race and death penalty cases 2. a study of death sentences in the state of Georgia results 2a. defendants who kill white get capital punishment in 11% of cases 2b. defendants who kill blacks get capital punishment in 1% of cases 2c. capital punishment in 22% of cases of blacks, with white victim 2d. capital punishment in 8% of cases of white defendant and white victim 2e. capital punishment in 1% of cases of black defendant and black victim 2f. capital punishment in 3% of cases of white defendant and black victim 3. conclusion 3a. black defendants who kill whites have greatest chance of getting capital punishment

sentencing reform

1. the quest for "just punishment" 2. intermediate sentencing 2a. offender specific, gives discretion to corrections officials 3. liberal critics assert 3a. racial bias can still be used by specific CJ officials 3b. discretion must remain tight to avoid bias 4. conservative critics assert 4a. rehabilitation programs are not effective 4b. even more punitive sentencing guidelines are needed