Identify arguments for and against the use of victim impact statements during sentencing hearings.

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

? In an attempt to close even the limited loophole of judicial discretion offered by departures, politicians (often urged on by their constituents) have passed sentencing laws even more contrary to the idea of individualized justice. These mandatory (minimum) sentencing guidelines further limit a judge's power to deviate from determinate sentencing laws by setting firm standards for certain crimes.? Habitual offender laws are a form of mandatory sentencing found in twenty-six states and used by the federal government. Also known as "three-strikes-and-you're-out" laws, these statutes require that any person convicted of a third felony must serve a lengthy prison sentence. In many cases, the under- lying crime does not have to be of a violent or dangerous nature.? Nearly thirty states have reformed their mandatory sentencing laws since 2000. In general, these reforms take one of three approaches:1. Expanding judicial discretion. In Iowa, judges can depart from mandatory minimum sentences for certain drug crimes when no violence or threat of violence was present.2. Limiting habitual offender "triggers." In Nevada, misdemeanor convictions no longer count toward a five-year mandatory minimum sentence for a third conviction.3. Repealing or revising mandatory minimum sentences. In 2009, New York repealed the "Rockefeller drug laws," eliminating mandatory minimum sentences for low-level drug offenders.