Indeterminate Sentencing Laws - Essay Example

Liberal criticism of indeterminate sentencing law is based upon the fact that people who have committed similar crimes usually serve a different number of years. This discrepancy creates an ambiguous sentencing system. Conservatively, indeterminate sentencing is based on the principle of rehabilitation. Evidence in the 1970s revealed that rehabilitation had very little impact on the convict’s future decisions with respect to crime. The rehabilitation system also focused on the convict, neglecting the crime and the victims.

There was no sense of punishment, retribution or deterrence.Indeterminate sentencing was once very popular but it was however noted that at times judges were too lenient and that rehabilitation did not stop convicts from committing more crimes in the future. The legislature, therefore, instituted mandatory minimum sentences that had to be served irrespective of good behavior. Apart from this, sentencing guidelines were also adopted to prevent ambiguous sentencing. Finally, legislatures adopted three-strike laws that act as reinforcement to rehabilitation measures.

Indeterminate laws were very common in the 1970s but we however full of inconsistencies. Due to several criticisms about their effectiveness, legislatures around the country undertook several modifications in order to justify its use.