Deck 15: Sentencing Decisions

Question 1

What is the primary purpose of a PSI?

A)help juries decide on an appropriate sentence
B)help courtroom work groups decide on an appropriate sentence
C)help judges decide on an appropriate sentence
D)help probation officers monitor their caseloads

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Adherents of both the due process and crime control models have called for

A)more emphasis on rehabilitation
B)more punishment for drug offenders
C)reductions in judicial discretion
D)reductions in the use of mandatory minimums

Answer 2

C

Question 3

How many states have adopted determinate sentencing laws?

A)all states
B)no states
C)half of states
D)less than half of states

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Capital punishment research on the offender-victim dyad established that which of the following cases were more likely to result in the death penalty as compared to other dyads?

A)black offenders and white victims
B)white offenders and white victims
C)black offenders and black victims
D)white offenders and black victims

Question 5

Inconsistencies resulting from the decision making process are called…

A)disparities
B)discrimination
C)aggravators
D)mitigators

Question 6

What is the main objective of changes in sentencing structure?

A)increase in judicial discretion
B)reduction in judicial discretion
C)reduction in prosecutorial discretion
D)increase in prosecutorial discretion

Question 7

What sentencing guidelines require a judge to provide an explanation for any deviation?

A)presumptive sentencing guidelines
B)indeterminate sentencing guidelines
C)prescriptive sentencing guidelines
D)voluntary sentencing guidelines

Question 8

Which of the following is one way that discretion can offset mandatory minimum penalties?

A)reduction in arrests
B)prosecutorial discretion
C)decrease in convictions
D)all of these answers are correct

Question 9

Disparity refers to inconsistencies in sentencing.What is the principle topic of interest in disparity?

A)the decision making process
B)the sentencing process
C)the defendant's attributes
D)use of sentencing guidelines

Question 10

What is one of the most important mitigating factors?

A)perceived social stability of the defendant
B)perceived employability of the defendant
C)perceived capability of the defendant
D)perceived marketability of the defendant

Question 11

Differences in sentencing caused by different laws in different jurisdictions or differences in judicial attitudes toward sentencing is called sentencing

A)discrimination.
B)discreteness.
C)dexterity.
D)disparity.

Question 12

What is the second most important factor in sentencing?

A)the defendant's prior record
B)the seriousness of the offense
C)the injury to the victim
D)cost of incarceration

Question 13

What is stressed in the law on the books perspective on mandatory minimum sentences?

A)certainty of punishment
B)certainty of discretion
C)certainty of nullification
D)certainty of sentence

Question 14

In 2010, the incarceration rate in the United States did what for the first time in 40 years?

A)decreased.
B)increased.
C)remained the same.
D)included women.

Question 15

What sentencing schemes target sentencing decisions by judges?

A)structured sentencing
B)determinate sentencing
C)indeterminate sentencing
D)voluntary sentencing

Question 16

The most important factor in setting normal penalties is the

A)seriousness of the offense.
B)prior record of the offender.
C)persuasiveness of the prosecutor.
D)skill of the defense attorney.

Question 17

Which of the following statements is not true of a presentence investigation report?

A)It includes police accounts of the crime.
B)It includes the defendant's social history.
C)It is prepared prior to trial to assist the court in ruling on a lawyer's motions.
D)It may include the defendant's prior convictions.

Question 18

Factors such as young age, lack of mental capacity, and lower social stability may have an influence on sentencing and are called

A)mitigating factors.
B)positive and negative sanctions.
C)latent and patent considerations.
D)exacerbating and exculpatory factors.

Question 19

The Supreme Court ruled what unconstitutional in 2005?

A)state sentencing guidelines
B)voluntary sentencing guidelines
C)federal sentencing guidelines
D)proscriptive sentencing guidelines

Question 20

What does the offender-victim dyad refer to?

A)age of the defendant and age of the victim
B)race of the defendant and race of the victim
C)gender of the defendant and gender of the victim
D)relationship of the defendant the victim

Question 21

In Mistretta v.U.S.(1989) the U.S.Supreme Court held these to be constitutional and did not violate separation of powers.

A)sex offender registration laws
B)the federal sentencing commission and guidelines
C)determinate sentences
D)the abolition of federal parole

Question 22

In Blakely v.Washington (2004) the U.S.Supreme Court invalidated a Washington State sentencing law on what grounds?

A)The law allowed prosecutors to use evidence that had not been admitted at trial.
B)The law allowed judges, rather than juries, to take into account information that increased a sentence.
C)The law was not in compliance with federal sentencing guidelines.
D)The offender's prior convictions were granted too much weight.

Question 23

Which of the following types of punishment has figured prominently in studies of racial discrimination in sentencing?

A)Parole
B)capital punishment
C)probation
D)fines

Question 24

Sentencing is a two-stage process.The first decision whether to grant probation, to incarcerate, or impose an intermediate sanction.The second decision is what?

A)where to incarcerate
B)who should supervise
C)whether to punish consecutively or concurrently
D)how long the sentence should be

Question 25

More studies have been done of racial discrimination at what decision point than any other in the criminal justice system?

A)arrest.
B)sentencing.
C)booking.
D)release.

Question 26

In Ewing v.California the U.S.Supreme Court held that what California law did not violate the Eighth Amendment?

A)mandatory-minimum sentencing
B)parole abolition
C)indeterminate sentencing
D)three-strikes

Question 27

What member of the court room work group generally conducts a pre-sentence investigation?

A)the defense attorney.
B)the probation officer.
C)the prosecutor.
D)the judge.

Question 28

Collectively, research supports the proposition that which of the following groups are sentenced more harshly than any other group?

A)young, poor, African-American and Hispanic males.
B)middle-aged, poor, African-American and Hispanic males.
C)young, poor, African-American and Hispanic females.
D)young, middle-class, African-American and Hispanic males.

Question 29

In Graham v.Florida, the U.S.Supreme Court found that what sentence was in violation of the Eighth Amendment prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment?

A)life without parole of a juvenile in a non-homicide crime
B)mandatory minimum sentences
C)three strikes sentences
D)capital punishment for juveniles

Question 30

Which of the following courts make greater use of probation and shorter prison terms?

A)urban courts
B)municipal courts
C)rural courts
D)county courts

Question 31

Adherents of the crime control model were not concerned with

A)excessive discretion.
B)undue leniency.
C)disparity.
D)lenient parole boards.

Question 32

Regarding gender-based differences in sentencing outcomes, the evil woman hypothesis focuses on

A)traditional sex role expectations.
B)treating women like children.
C)treating women the same as men.
D)traditional female crimes.

Question 33

Which of the following is used to increase the severity of sentences?

A)mitigating factors
B)sentencing guidelines
C)determinate sentencing
D)mandatory minimum sentencing

Question 34

Adherents of the due process model were concerned about a

A)lack of fairness in sentencing.
B)lack of harshness in sentencing.
C)failure to keep offenders in prison long enough.
D)failure to release offenders from prison soon enough.

Question 35

Which of the following is true for both liberals and conservatives regarding changes to sentencing structures?

A)they sought greater predictability in sentencing.
B)they sought harsher sentencing.
C)they sought more lenient in sentencing.
D)they sought to take sentencing away from judges and give it to legislators.

Question 36

What are the most popular mandatory minimum laws?

A)truth in sentencing laws
B)limited probation laws
C)no good time laws
D)three strikes laws

Question 37

The chivalry/paternalism hypothesis emphasizes that women are

A)mature
B)innocent
C)competent
D)childlike

Question 38

According to the chapter, who is the most experienced member of the courtroom team?

A)the judge.
B)the prosecutor.
C)the defense attorney.
D)the stenographer.

Question 39

Executions in what region of the United States clearly show major racial differences?

A)North.
B)South.
C)East.
D)West.

Question 40

Which of the following statements is consistent with some research?

A)More racially-diverse courtroom work groups appear to reduce sentencing disparities
B)Less racially-diverse courtroom work groups appear to reduce sentencing disparities
C)More racially-diverse courtroom work groups appear to increase sentencing disparities
D)Less racially-diverse courtroom work groups appear to increase sentencing disparities

Question 41

Discrimination refers to legitimate influences on the sentencing processes.

Question 42

A law on the books approach to mandatory minimum sentences stresses nullification by discretion, whereas a law in action approach stresses certainty of punishment.

Question 43

Failure to submit a sentencing factor to a jury is subject to what kind of review?

A)harmless error review.
B)harmful error review.
C)strict scrutiny review.
D)harmless scrutiny review.

Question 44

Some state supreme courts held that Blakely did not apply to their state sentencing schemes until what case?

A)Cunningham v.California (2007).
B)United States v.Booker (2005).
C)Rita v.United States (2007).
D)Kimbrough v.United States (2007).

Question 45

Disparities refer to inconsistencies resulting from the decision-making process.

Question 46

Which offender-victim dyad has research show is least likely to result in execution?

A)black offender, white victim
B)black offender, black victim
C)white offender, white victim
D)white offender, black victim

Question 47

Since Cunningham, it is clear that Blakely applies to state sentencing laws.

Question 48

The finding that poor, young, minority males are disproportionately represented in prison populations provides proof of discrimination.

Question 49

Overall, states in the western region of the United States impose the harshest punishments for crime.

Question 50

Seriousness of offense and prior record of the defendant are the most important factors in determining normal penalties.

Question 51

Many judges say that sentencing is the most difficult part of the job.

Question 52

Because of evidence of racial discrimination, the U.S.Supreme Court struck down Georgia's capital punishment statute in McCleskey v.Kemp.

Question 53

What two extra-legal factors that impact the imposition of a sentence above the maximum range of sentencing guidelines appear to affect both jury and judicial decision-making in particular?

A)age and sex.
B)age and economic status.
C)economic status and sex.
D)race and age.

Question 54

Researchers find that urban courts make greater use of probation and shorter prison terms than their rural counterparts.

Question 55

When a crime is perceived to be less serious, individual factors such as prior record are given relatively less weight than when the crime is more serious.

Question 56

Which offender-victim dyad has research show is most likely to result in execution?

A)black offender, white victim
B)black offender, black victim
C)white offender, white victim
D)white offender, black victim

Question 57

In United States v.Booker (2005), the Supreme Court held that the federal sentencing guidelines are unconstitutional but judges may use them as advisory.

Question 58

The results of the most recent and methodologically sophisticated studies provide evidence that the contemporary sentencing process is not racially neutral.

Question 59

Judges generally follow the sentencing recommendation provided in a probation officer's presentence investigation report.

Question 60

Evidence of racial imbalance in prison populations is not evidence of racial discrimination in the sentencing process.

Question 61

Sentencing _____ refers to inconsistencies in sentencing resulting from the decision-making process.

Question 62

True _____ sentencing schemes control release decisions, usually by abolishing parole boards in addition to other measures.

Question 63

_____ circumstances may lead to a higher penalty.

Question 64

Research suggests that the death penalty is most likely to be inflicted in cases involving a black offender and a _____ victim.

Question 65

The use of discretion by criminal justice system actors can sometimes nullify or compensate for severe punishment laws.

Question 66

The Supreme Court has held that judges and not juries have the authority to determine important facts (other than prior record) that determine sentencing.

Question 67

A sentencing guidelines grid allows for upward and downward departures from the guidelines.

Question 68

Changes in sentencing structure since the 1960s have resulted in a major increase in the number of persons in prison in the United States.

Question 69

Legislatively altered sentencing structures have had a minimal effect on prison populations across the United States.

Question 70

The race of the offender and victim is less important in sentencing the race of the offender alone.

Question 71

Mandatory minimum sentencing laws are one method legislatures use to decrease the severity of sentencing.

Question 72

Judges sometimes consider _____ investigation reports when deciding on a sentence.

Question 73

Juries and not judges have the _____ to decide on important facts (other than prior record) that determine sentencing.

Question 74

Federal sentencing guidelines are now mandatory rather than advisory.

Question 75

The concepts of _____ and discrimination highlight unwarranted variations in sentencing but point to different types of factors.

Question 76

An example of a(n) _____ factor in sentencing may be use of a weapon and personal injury to the victim.

Question 77

A law on the books approach to mandatory minimum sentences stresses _____ of punishment.

Question 78

The trend since the 1970s has been to reduce judicial discretion in sentencing.

Question 79

One of the major factors involved in sentencing disparities is the geography of justice.

Question 80

Structured sentencing schemes target sentencing decisions by _____.