The state of race and punishment in America: Is justice really blind?

Racial Disparities in Federal Sentencing Outcomes: Clarifying the Role of Criminal History

“…Equality under the law is a central tenet of the American justice system (see Franklin, 2018; Kleck, 1981). Researchers have assessed court actors’ adherence to this principle over the past several decades, with special attention given to issues of race and ethnicity (for reviews, see Baumer, 2013; Franklin, 2018; Kleck, 1981; Spohn, 2000; Ulmer, 2012; Zatz, 1987, 2000). Given the expansive discretion afforded to judges, some of the earliest research examined the effects of race on their sentencing decisions (see Kleck, 1981; Spohn, 2000).…”

“…To refine our understanding of the race/sentencing relationship and to better inform judges about the nature of existing disparities, researchers began examining not only whether race mattered during the sentencing process but also under what circumstances it was most consequential (Chiricos & Crawford, 1995; Spohn, 2000; Zatz, 1987). Despite widespread attempts to eliminate disparity through state and federal sentencing guidelines, research has suggested race and ethnicity still influence sentencing decisions in some contexts (Franklin, 2018; Mitchell, 2005; Spohn, 2000; Ulmer, 2012). For example, minority offenders (specifically Black and Latino offenders) have been more likely to receive harsher punishment outcomes (relative to White offenders) if cases were adjudicated in the south (Chiricos & Crawford, 1995; Mitchell, 2005), in courts with lower minority representation (Farrell, Ward, & Rousseau, 2009; King, Johnson, & McGeever, 2010), and if offenders were young males (Doerner & Demuth, 2010; Steffensmeier, Ulmer, & Kramer, 1998; Warren, Chiricos, & Bales, 2012).…”

Race, Ethnicity, Crime Type, and the Sentencing of Violent Felony Offenders

“…Much criminological research has examined racial/ethnic disparities in criminal sentencing, and the evidence suggests that Black and Hispanic offenders generally are more likely to receive sentences to jail or prison and are given longer incarceration terms than similarly situated White defendants (see the reviews by Baumer, 2013; Franklin, 2018; Mitchell, 2005; Spohn, 2000; Ulmer, 2012; Zatz, 2000). Some studies have revealed that these and other extralegal disparities in punishment have remained present even following the implementation of sentencing guidelines systems and other reforms intended to restrict judicial discretion (e.g., Griffin & Wooldredge, 2006; Mustard, 2001; Wang et al, 2013).…”

Gender, age, and ethnic differences in offending behavior among Hispanic/Latino criminal justice clients

“…Among all racial/ethnic groups, the largest gender difference in the decision to incarcerate were found for Hispanic/Latinos, with men more likely to be incarcerated than women (Doerner, 2015). Past research has reported on the interaction between race/ethnicity, gender and age among offenders, and found that Hispanic/Latino male offenders, and especially young Hispanic/Latino males, were more likely to be sentenced to prison as compared to White offenders (Doerner & Demuth, 2010;Franklin, 2018). Another recent study examined gender differences by drug offense and found that drug offenders received longer incarceration sentences than non-drug offenders; and that Hispanic/Latino women were 44% less likely to be incarcerated than Hispanic/Latino men for a drug offense (Doerner, 2015).…”