User:Emeeker/sandbox

Quote from Australia document: "The introduction of minimum mandatory regimes in most states and territories and the Commonwealth are a political response to the concern that courts are too lenient on offenders. Advocates claim that such laws deter crime, provide consistency in sentencing and address public concerns about leniency within the criminal justice system." (9)

Rewording: Mandatory minimum sentences were implemented by policymakers to counter public concern about judicial lenience on crime. The belief was that harsher sentences would deter people from committing crimes and promote more consistent sentencing across states and territories.

Remedying the irregularities in sentencing that arise from judicial discretion would make sentencing more fair and balanced. In Australia and the UK, sentencing has been heavily influenced by judicial idiosyncrasies. Individual judges have a significant effect on the outcome of the case, sometimes leading the public to believe that a sentence reflects more about the judge than the offender. Subsequently, creating stricter sentencing guidelines would promote consistency and fairness in the judicial system.

The idea is that there are some crimes that are so heinous, there is no way to accept the offender back into the general population without first punishing them sufficiently. Some crimes are viewed as serious enough to require an indefinite removal from society by a life sentence, or sometimes capital punishment. It is viewed as a public service to separate these people from the general population, as it is assumed that the nature of the crime or the frequency of violation supersedes the subjective opinion of a judge.

[Intro]

Mandatory sentencing requires that offenders serve a predefined term for certain crimes, commonly serious and violent offenses. Judges are bound by law; these sentences are produced through the legislature, not the judicial system. The are instituted to expedite the sentencing process and limit the possibility of irregularity of outcomes due to judicial discretion.

Original line: "Typically, people convicted of certain crimes must be punished with at least a minimum number of years in prison." Edit: "These mandatory sentences are typically given to people convicted of certain serious and/or violent crimes, which require a prison sentence."

Quote: In 2013, United States Attorney General Eric H. Holder, Jr. announced that the Justice Department would follow a new policy restricting mandatory minimum sentences in certain drug cases.[7]

Addition: In Alleyne v. United States (2013) the Supreme Court held that increasing a sentence past the mandatory minimum requirement must be submitted by a jury and found factual beyond a reasonable doubt. It increases the burden on the prosecutor to prove that the sentence is necessary for the individual crime by requiring that a mandatory minimum sentence be denied for defendant unless they fulfill certain criteria. Attorney General Holder held that the charges placed on an individual should reflect the uniqueness of the case and consideration in assessing and fairly representing his/her given conduct. This is supposed to prevent recidivism.