Describe the relationship between race and sentencing. Include a discussion of the impact the victim's race has on sentencing.

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Racial disparity and sentencing have always been at the center of debate. It is suspected because a disproportionate number of African American inmates are in state prisons and on death row. Minorities, in particular those who are indigent or unemployed, seem to receive longer sentences than Caucasians and have, on average, 20 percent longer sentences than whites, even when age, gender, and recommended sentence length are held constant. One of the aspects that may explain the disparity is that young black men are more likely to be imprisoned for drug offenses, which places an entire cohort of young African American males in jeopardy. Additionally, race may affect sentencing in other ways. Research indicates that the victim's race may play an even more important role in sentencing than the offender. Minority defendants are sanctioned more severely if their victim is white than if their target is a fellow minority group member. While the relationship between race and sentencing is complex, there is little question the defendant's race does shape justice and the effects include communities being destabilized by the marginalizing and incarcerating of so many African American men.