Justice System Paper

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and these statements usually have a large impact on what the defendant is sentenced to. In new york state the sentence for first degree murder would be 20-25 years to life, second degree murder is 15-25 years to life. Sexual assault depending on how many felonies could vary from 10 years to life. Possessing 8 or more ounces of narcotics or cds could include a fine of up to $100,000 and/or at 15-25 years in prison. Some of the main punishments are to pay a fine, pay restitution to the victim, go to jail or prison serve a period of time on probation ,do community service, complete educational, counseling or treatment programs and in some rare cases the death penalty. The death penalty pretty much means to kill the person found guilty. Most states have laws for imposing the death penalty. In some cases a judge can impose the death penalty, but in most cases it is decided by a jury, the same jury that voted to find the person guilty will state their arguments for why or why not the death penalty should take place. There are also sentences that could be considered Consecutive and Current Sentences. If you were convicted for more than one crime the judge can impose a separate sentence for each crime. If the sentences are consecutive, you will serve one sentence and then begin serving the next, if the sentences are concurrent, that means they are all being served at the same time.

The united states has the highest documented rate of incarceration in the world, a rate that has increased by 500 percent over the past 40 years. Higher education in prisons has shown that every dollar spent saves the taxpayer between four and five dollars as a result of reduced recidivism. The U.S. prison population is more than 2.4 million. That means more than one out of every 100 American adults are in prison and 14 percent of the prison population is in federal prison. Since 2002, the United States has had the highest incarceration rate in the world. Although prison populations are increasing in some parts of the world, the natural rate of incarceration for countries comparable to the United States tends to stay around 100 prisoners per 100,000 population. The prison population grew by 700 percent, a rate that is outpacing crime and population rates. The incarceration rates disproportionately impact men of color; 1 in every 15 African American men and 1 in every 36 Hispanic men are incarcerated in comparison to 1 in every 106 white men. According to the US Bureau of Justice Statistics non-Hispanic blacks accounted for 39.4% of the total prison and jail population, 841,000 black males and 64,800 black females out of a total of 2,096,300 males and 201,200 females.

There are still many issues with the justice system in american and a lot that needs to be fixed.