Simple Rhetoric and Complex Punitiveness: Federal Criminal Justice Responses to White-Collar Criminality

Abstract

Though criminological literature shows that the manifestation of punitiveness in the criminal justice system is complex, it rarely differentiates between responses to different kinds of crimes. This constitutes a significant gap in knowledge, as it is widely believed that white-collar crimes are treated leniently. In light of the “heating up” of political rhetoric, the expansion of federal criminal law, and the increased maximum punishments on conviction, the article aims to explore whether prosecutorial and judicial responses to white-collar crimes have become more punitive, employing rarely used datasets from the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) between 1996 and 2014. It is demonstrated that these responses are more complex and less consistently punitive than the rhetoric and policies advanced by politicians. It endeavors to capture the complexity of punitiveness in practice by measuring numerous variables and multiple points in the criminal justice process, studying punitiveness from multiple angles, using prosecution and sentencing data.     

RACIAL AND ETHNIC DIFFERENCES IN PRETRIAL RELEASE DECISIONS AND OUTCOMES: A COMPARISON OF HISPANIC,BLACK, AND WHITE FELONY ARRESTEES*

The present study uses data on the processing of felony defendants in large urban courts to examine Hispanic, black, and white differences at the pretrial release stage. The major finding is that Hispanic defendants are more likely to be detained than white and black defendants. And, racial/ethnic differences are most pronounced in drug cases. In fact, Hispanic defendants suffer a triple burden at the pretrial release stage as they are the group most likely to be required to pay bail to gain release, the group that receives the highest bail amounts, and the group least able to pay bail. These findings are consistent with a focal concerns perspective of criminal case processing that suggests Hispanics as a newly immigrated group are especially prone to harsher treatment in the criminal case process.     

同治中兴:晚清政治体制模式与政治伦理的悖离

发生在清朝末年的同治中兴,虽在形式上保全了清政府君主专制中央集权的政权组织形式,但其政治体制模式却遭到结构性破坏———中央集权权力向地方督抚下移,而中兴所倚重的中兴名臣仍然抱持儒家封建政治伦理,造成清末政治体制模式与政治伦理相互悖离,双方均失去了在政治建设中的合法性和积极意义。其矛盾运动的结果,使中国近代社会政治新陈代谢的过程曲折而漫长,甚至迂回不前,并出现晚清政局特有的征象。     

情节犯若干问题新探

情节犯之情节仅指定罪情节,并不含有量刑情节。区分情节犯中的定罪情节和一般的犯罪情节, 及如何区分情节犯和一般犯显得相当重要。情节犯之情节的含义应当是指能够体现行为的客观危害性和行为人 的主观恶性的一切法律事实,其是犯罪构成的要件,同时又具有不同的类型。     

THE EFFECT OF GENDER ON THE DECISION TO INCARCERATE BEFORE AND AFTER THE INTRODUCTION OF SENTENCING GUIDELINES*

The present study explores the relationships between gender and imprisonment decisions in Minnesota before and after the introduction of sentencing guidelines. Results from a series of logistic regression models indicate that gender alone did not have a significant impact on the likelihood of imprisonment, but women with dependent children were significantly less likely to be imprisoned before sentencing guidelines and in the years subsequent to their implementation. The findings suggest that despite the introduction of sentencing reforms, court officials tend to return to issues of substantive justice, and they appear unable to shed their individual or organizational ideas of fairness in sentencing.     

菲律宾南部穆斯林分离运动的缘由——反抗组织领导层与普通穆斯林的意识形态错位

菲律宾南部摩洛人在几百年的反殖斗争中形成了以信仰伊斯兰教为基础的认同,这种同一性是战后菲律宾南部穆斯林反抗运动的主要精神动力.但是战后兴起的摩洛民族解放阵线、摩洛伊斯兰解放阵线及阿布沙耶夫三个反抗组织在发展过程中均没能从这种宗教同一性出发,反抗运动的领导层和下层穆斯林在意识形态上存在着错位的现象,普通穆斯林积极参加反抗运动另有原因.     

对我国《海商法》中有关航次租船合同的某些问题探讨

本文就航次租船合同的适用法律 ,合同订立形式 ,适航 ,绕航 ,运费支付 ,合同解除等问题做了浅析 ,并对《海商法》中某些相关条款提出修改建议     

JUVENILITY AND PUNISHMENT: SENTENCING JUVENILES IN ADULT CRIMINAL COURT*

The study outlined in this article addressed a key limitation of prior research on the punishment of juveniles transferred to adult court by employing propensity score matching techniques to create more comparable samples of juvenile and young adult offenders. Using recent data from the Maryland State Commission on Criminal Sentencing Policy, it tested competing theoretical propositions about the salience of juvenile status in adult court. Findings indicate that even after rigorous statistical matching procedures, juvenile offenders are punished more severely than their young adult counterparts. We found no evidence that this “juvenile penalty” is exacerbated by an offender's race or gender, but it does vary starkly across offense type and mode of transfer, being driven primarily by drug crimes and discretionary waivers. The import of these findings is discussed as they relate to the future of juvenile justice policy regarding the continued use of juvenile transfer to adult court.     

人格理论视角下的宽严相济刑事政策

宽严相济的刑事政策是党和国家在建设社会主义和谐社会过程中提出的刑事司法政策,在贯彻过程中应当注重与建设和谐社会的背景相适应,调动一切积极因素打击和控制犯罪.为此,我们应当结合人格刑法理论,在定罪、量刑与行刑时,充分考虑行为人的人格,抛弃传统的刑罚万能观念,该宽则宽,该严要严,二者结合,充分发挥刑事政策的作用.     

贪污罪量刑基准体系的构建及回归分析

根据刑法规定,通过贪污罪的犯罪结果与处刑数量之间的线性关系,把定量分析方法应用于贪污罪的处刑实践,并依此建立了贪污罪的量刑基准体系,以准确确定被告人应当承担刑事责任的数量,以减少司法实践中法官个体之间对贪污罪行为处刑的差异。