Table Of Content

HANDBOOK ON SENTENCING POLICIES AND PRACTICES IN THE 21ST CENTURY The Handbook on Sentencing Policies and Practices in the 21st Century focuses on the evolution and consequences of sentencing policies and practices, with sentencing broadly defined to include plea bargaining, judicial and juror decision- making, and alternatives to incarceration, including participa- tion in problem- solving courts. This collection of essays and reports of original research explores how sentencing policies and practices, both in the United States and internationally, have evolved, explores important issues raised by guideline and non- guideline sentencing, and provides an overview of recent research on plea bargaining in the United States, Australia, and the United Kingdom. Other topics include the role of criminal history in sentencing, the past and future of capital punishment, strategies for reducing mass incarceration, problem- solving courts, and restorative justice practices. Each chapter summarizes what is known, identifies the gaps in the research, and discusses the theoretical, empirical, and policy implications of the research findings. The volume is grounded in current knowledge about the spe- cific topics, but also presents new material that reflects the thinking of the leading minds in the field and that outlines a research agenda for the future. This is Volume 4 of the American Society of Criminology’s Division on Corrections and Sentencing handbook series. Previous volumes focused on risk assessment, disparities in punishment, and the consequences of punishment decisions. The handbooks provide a comprehensive overview of these topics for scholars, students, practitioners, and policymakers. Cassia Spohn is a Foundation Professor and Director of the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Arizona State University. She is a Fellow of the American Society of Criminology, a Fellow of the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences, and a Fellow of the Western Society of Criminology. Her research interests include prosecutorial and judicial decision- making, the intersections of race, ethnicity, gender, crime and justice, and sexual assault case- processing decisions. Pauline K. Brennan is a Professor and the Ph.D. Program Director for the School of Criminology and Justice Studies at the University of Massachusetts Lowell. Her research focuses on racial and gender inequities in court processing, corrections policy, and issues related to female offenders and victims. Her work has appeared in the top journals in the field, including Justice Quarterly, The Journal of Quantitative Criminology, and Criminal Justice and Behavior. THE ASC DIVISION ON CORRECTIONS & SENTENCING HANDBOOK SERIES Edited by Pamela K. Lattimore and John R. Hepburn. The American Society of Criminology’s Division on Corrections & Sentencing sponsors a series of volumes published by Routledge on seminal and topical issues that span the fields of sentencing and corrections. The critical essays, reviews, and original research in each volume provide a comprehensive assessment of the current state of knowledge, contribute to public policy discussions, and identify future research directions. Each thematic volume focuses on a single topical issue that intersects with corrections and sentencing research. The contents are eclectic in regard to disciplinary foci, theoretical frameworks and perspectives, and research methodologies. EDITORIAL BOARD Gaylene Armstrong, University of Nebraska Omaha Todd Clear, Rutgers University Francis T. Cullen, University of Cincinnati Jodi Lane, University of Florida Dan Mears, Florida State University Joan Petersilia, Stanford University Cassia Spohn, Arizona State University Jeffery Ulmer, Pennsylvania State University Steve Van Dine, Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction Christy Visher, University of Delaware HANDBOOK ON RISK AND NEED ASSESSMENT Theory and Practice Taxman HANDBOOK ON PUNISHMENT DECISIONS Locations of Disparity Ulmer and Bradley HANDBOOK ON THE CONSEQUENCES OF SENTENCING AND PUNISHMENT DECISIONS Huebner and Frost HANDBOOK ON SENTENCING POLICIES AND PRACTICES IN THE 21ST CENTURY Spohn and Brennan HANDBOOK ON SENTENCING POLICIES AND PRACTICES IN THE 21ST CENTURY Edited by Cassia Spohn and Pauline K. Brennan First published 2020 by Routledge 52 Vanderbilt Avenue, New York, NY 10017 and by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4RN Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business © 2020 Taylor & Francis The right of Cassia Spohn and Pauline K. Brennan to be identified as the authors of the editorial material, and of the authors for their individual chapters, has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe. Library of Congress Cataloging- in- Publication Data Names: Spohn, Cassia, editor. | Brennan, Pauline Katherine, 1967– editor. Title: Handbook on sentencing policies and practices in the 21st century / Cassia Spohn & Pauline K. Brennan. Description: Abingdon, Oxon ; New York, NY : Routledge, 2019. | Series: American Society of Criminology§s Division on Corrections and Sentencing handbook series ; Volume 4 Identifiers: LCCN 2019011041 (print) | LCCN 2019012916 (ebook) | ISBN 9780429027765 (Ebook) | ISBN 9780367136499 (hardback) Subjects: LCSH: Sentences (Criminal procedure)–English-speaking countries. Classification: LCC K5121 (ebook) | LCC K5121 .H36 2019 (print) | DDC 345/.0772–dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019011041 ISBN: 978- 0- 367- 13649- 9 (hbk) ISBN: 978- 0- 429- 02776- 5 (ebk) Typeset in Bembo by Newgen Publishing UK We dedicate this book to Chet Britt, Marie Griffin, and Ben Steiner, exemplary scholars within the Division on Corrections and Sentencing. You are deeply missed by your friends and colleagues. Chester L. Britt, III (1962– 2016) Professor, Iowa State University Marie Griffin (1967– 2016) Professor, Arizona State University Benjamin M. Steiner (1975– 2019) Professor, University of Nebraska Omaha CONTENTS Contributors x Sentencing Policies and Practices in the 21st Century: An Introduction 1 Cassia Spohn and Pauline K. Brennan PART I The Evolution of Sentencing Policies and Practices 17 1 The Transformation of Sentencing in the 21st Century 19 Megan C. Kurlychek and John H. Kramer 2 Sentencing Guidelines in the United States 43 Richard S. Frase and Kelly Lyn Mitchell 3 Sentencing Guidelines Outside the United States 68 Julian V. Roberts and Lyndon Harris PART II Issues in Guideline and Non-G uideline Sentencing 87 4 Inter- district Differences and Extra-l egal Disparity in Federal Sentencing: The Trees Are “Substantially” More Important Than the Forest 89 Richard D. Hartley vii Contents 5 Minimum Sentencing for Serious Offenses: Lessons from Australia 114 Kate Fitz- Gibbon and James Roffee 6 Discretionary Release Practices for Juveniles Facing Life: A Review of State Parole and Resentencing Procedures 129 Stuti S. Kokkalera and Simon I. Singer PART III Plea Bargaining 151 7 Plea Negotiations: An Australian Perspective 153 Arie Freiberg and Asher Flynn 8 Plea Bargaining in the Shadow of the Trial 168 Amy Dezember and Allison D. Redlich 9 Estimating the Size of Plea Discounts: Why Does It Matter? 188 Shi Yan 10 To Plead or Not to Plead? “Guilt” is the Question: Rethinking Sentencing and Plea Decision- Making in Anglo- American Countries 208 Jay Gormley and Cyrus Tata PART IV Capital Punishment 235 11 Evolving Attitudes toward Capital Punishment 237 Amy L. Anderson, Weng- Fong Chao, and Philip Schwadel 12 Disparities in Death Penalty Prosecution and Punishment: A Review of Recent Research and an Expanded Agenda 254 Jeffery T. Ulmer and Lily Hanrath PART V Current Controversies 281 13 Rethinking the Role of Criminal History in Sentencing 283 Rhys Hester, Richard S. Frase, Julia Laskorunsky, and Kelly Lyn Mitchell 14 AB109 in California: Realignment, Decarceration and Crime in Los Angeles County 312 Katharine Tellis and Cassia Spohn viii Contents 15 The Problem with Problem- solving Courts: The Black Box Remains Unopened after Thirty Years 339 Eileen M. Ahlin and Anne S. Douds 16 Restorative Justice Practices and Challenges in the United States 360 Jennifer L. Lanterman Index 378 ix