A Community's Opinion On Crime

An offender's criminal record is a powerful determinant of sentence severity in almost all criminal justice systems. State and federal sentencing guidelines accord a central role to criminal record, which is the second most important factor after crime seriousness. As well, most states have recidivist statutes such as “three strikes and you're out,” which prescribe swinging penalties for recidivist offenders. Although a great deal of research has examined public perceptions of sentencing and crime seriousness, little work has addressed the question of public support for criminal record as an aggravating factor in the sentencing process. This article reviews the limited research on this question. It would appear that the public supports a limited use of criminal history information, although there is little public enthusiasm for statutes or guidelines that impose sentences the severity of which clearly violates principles of desert.

show abstract

scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.

Contact Info

customersupport@researchsolutions.com

10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614

Henderson, NV 89052, USA

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Blog Terms and Conditions API Terms Privacy Policy Contact Cookie Preferences Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information

Made with 💙 for researchers

Part of the Research Solutions Family.

A Community's Opinion On Crime

Cited by 4 publications

References 9 publications

Crime trend perceptions, negative emotions, and public punitiveness: a survey experiment of information treatment

Crime trend perceptions, negative emotions, and public punitiveness: a survey experiment of information treatment

A comparative analysis of crime coverage in newspapers in the United States and other countries from 1960–1989: A review of the literature

Public Opinion, Criminal Record, and the Sentencing Process

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About