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68 Judicature 125 (1984-1985)
Criminal Sentencing in Transition

handle is hein.journals/judica68 and id is 127 raw text is: Criminal sentencing in transition by Don M. Gottfredson, symposium issue editor T he sentencing of convicted offend- ers, the hub of the criminal justice system, is being transformed. Trends over the last decade have seen legis- lative, judicial, and paroling initiatives in a number of jurisdictions that have increased markedly the determinancy with which sen- tences are set. The discretion available to the judge or paroling authority has been de- creased. Sentencing purposes have shifted from an emphasis on utilitarian aims, partic- ularly treatment, toward a greater focus on deserved punishment, on the proportionality of sanctions to harms done, and on equity. The fundamental jurisprudential conflict is over whether what is right (deserved pun- ishment) is good or whether what is good (the utilitarian, crime control aims of deter- rence, incapacitation, and treatment) is right. The controversy has endured for thousands of years, but that does not negate its central importance to current debates, as reflected in the pages that follows. Alfred Blumstein discusses these and other changes in sentencing policy in the opening article of this symposium issue of Judicature, all of which has been adapted from presenta- tions at the National Conference on Sentenc- ing convened by the National Institute of Jus- tice in Baltimore, Maryland January 18-20, 1984. Remarking on the severe potential conse- quences of the prison crowding now found across the country, Blumstein calls for an analy- sis of impact on prison populations whenever changes in sentencing policy are considered. The increased emphasis on fairness, pre- dictability, and equity sought by presumptive sentencing1 was illustrated by the 1979 North Carolina Fair Sentencing Act. Stevens H. Clarke's article discusses how well the Act has worked-at least in its first year-in achiev- ing its intended results. Such careful study to enable assessment of sentencing policy changes is always needed yet usually lacking. Swelling prison populations, sinking con- fidence in the effectiveness of rehabilitative efforts, and increased emphasis on punish- ment all were reflected in discussions at the National Conference. There was widespread interest in the controversial concept of selec- tive incapacitation, which promises to reduce crime rates and prison populations simul- taneously. The selective incapacitation stra- tegy, its recent history, and arguments in sup- port of it are ably described by Brian Forst in his article. The concept is straightforward, but the sci- entific and ethical issues it raises are complex. What is proposed is that sentence lengths for some types of crime such as robbery or bur- glary should be set on the basis of how much crime the offender is predicted to do if not in

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