sentencing

Scottish Sentencing Council

Official website of the Scottish Sentencing Council, an independent advisory body which prepares sentencing guidelines for the courts in Scotland. Information given on the site includes guidance on sentencing in Scotland and definitions of different types of sentence, such as admonition and community payback orders. The Council also conducts and publishes research on sentencing, which is available on the site along with other publications - sentencing guidelines, annual reports, communications, consultations and teaching resources.

Sentencing Law and Policy

This blog is concerned with United States sentencing law and policy and is written by Professor Douglas A. Berman of the Moritz College of Law at Ohio State University. The blog has been running since 2004 and posts cover issues such as sentencing guidelines, sentencing reform, sentencing data and state sentencing guidelines. There are also posts focusing on specific cases and aspects of policy such as gun policy and sentencing. Previous posts can be browsed by date or topic or searched by keyword. Links are given to other US law and justice websites and other criminal law blogs.

Bhatt Murphy Solicitors

Bhatt Murphy is a London-based law firm specialising in the legal protection of civil liberties. Its website includes annotated timelines, with links to legislation and official publications, covering the following areas: police misconduct; tariff-setting for life prisoners; deaths in custody; immigration detention; parole hearings; and prison discipline. It also has a news page and a set of links to civil liberties websites.

American Society of Criminology

The American Society of Criminology is an international organisation which promotes research and education in all areas of criminal justice. It has divisions focusing on corrections and sentencing; critical criminology; experimental criminology; international criminology; people of color and crime; and women and crime. The website describes the work of the Society and provides information about its annual meeting. The Publications page includes a link to criminology abstracts.

Sentencing Project:

The Sentencing Project is an independent US organisation founded in 1986 to promote "reforms in sentencing law and practice, and alternatives to incarceration".The site has sections focusing on sentencing policy, incarceration, racial disparity, offender disenfranchisement, drug policies and women in the justice system. Each section provides access to full text reports, briefing sheets, educational materials and news items. There is a collection of advocacy materials and statistics arranged by state.

United States Sentencing Commission

Website of the United States Sentencing Commission. The Commission is an independent government agency which establishes policies on sentencing and punishment for US federal courts. It also advises Congress on crime policy and collects and publishes information on sentencing in the United States. The site publishes many documents to support and reflect the Commission's mandate including background and historical information.

Magistrates' Association

Website of the Magistrates' Association, the organisation representing volunteer magistrates in the United Kingdom. The site gives details about the organisation, aims and activities of the Association which include training, liaising with other criminal justice agencies and producing publications such as the Magistrate magazine and the Magistrates' Court Sentencing Guidelines. Detailed information is given about becoming a magistrate and what the work involves. There is information about the Magistrates in the Community project and a section of the site is aimed at young people.

Criminal Cases Review Commission

The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) is the government body which investigates suspected miscarriages of justice in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Its website provides information on the purpose and organisation of the body as well as its ongoing work. The site includes case studies concerning successful CCRC investigations, statistics about case reviews, academic research papers, details of current research projects and  information about how to apply for a case review.

International Journal of the Sociology of Law

A print journal published by Elsevier, but this site gives the titles and some abstracts of articles published since March 1995 (via Science Direct, an online journal delivery service). The title of the journal has been changed to International Journal of Law, Crime and Justice since 2007 December. The International Journal of the Sociology of Law is an interdisciplinary forum for high quality research and debate on social context and social implications of law, law-enforcement, and legal process.

Juvenile death penalty today: death sentences and executions for juvenile crimes January 1, 1973- February 28, 2005

Electronic version of a report on the juvenile death penalty in the United States written by Victor L. Streib who is Professor of Law at the Claude W. Pettit College of Law at the Ohio Northern University. The report is made freely available in full-text (PDF) on the Ohio Northern University Website. The report provides statistics, background, legal context and historical information. It looks at death sentences imposed throughout the 1973- 2003 period focusing on juvenile executions in the states of Texas, Oklahoma and Virginia.

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