Sentencing Aims Essay Model Answer

• Once the defendant has pleaded or been found guilty, the court must decide on sentence. There are a range of sentences to choose from and the court will have guidance to assist. When passing sentence, the Criminal Justice Act 2003, section 142 and s.57 of the Sentencing Act 2020, requires the courts to consider the various aims of sentencing.
• One such aim is retribution. All sentences will include an element of retribution, which is based on the idea of punishing the defendant for their wrongdoing. This is society's revenge against the offender for the offence and is based on proportionality. It is believed to be closely linked to the religious teaching 'an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a life for a life' as the judge will pass a sentence that is in proportion to the crime committed and should fit the crime.
• For example, a mandatory life sentence is appropriate for a defendant convicted of murder but would be excessive if it was given to a defendant who had stolen a TV and committed theft.
• Rehabilitation is to reform the offender to stop them re-offending and rehabilitate them back into society. The aim is forward-looking, with the hope that the offender's behaviour will be altered by the penalty imposed. Individualised sentences are passed aimed at the needs of the offender to assist them to solve (tackle) the issues that lie behind their offending, for example, with offending drug addicts being helped to overcome their addiction or teaching life skill which will gain them qualifications to help them get a job outside of prison such as GCSES or ICT courses.
• Reparation allows offenders to make up for of to 'repair the damage' caused by their offending. It is aimed at compensating the victim of the crime usually by ordering the payment of a sum of money but it can involve bringing offenders and victims together and allowing the offender to apologise and explain why they committed the crime. It doesn't work for all crimes and is most common in property offences such as theft. This aim of sentencing also includes making reparation to society as a whole for example having to complete unpaid work on a community project.
• With deterrence, the aim is to deter people from offending and reduce crime. There are 2 types of deterrence; 1. individual deterrence which aims to deter an individual from re-offending through fear by giving them harsh sentences such as imprisonment, for example in R v Whitton where a hooligan was given 10 years imprisonment for committing GBH after a soccer game.
• 2. General deterrence which aims to deter everyone by giving a defendant a harsh sentence to deter other would-be criminals. A judge may pass a harsh sentence to make an example of the defendant to send a message out to others as a warning. This was shown in the case of R v Carter where a harsh sentence was imposed on the defendant who used social media to encourage looting during the summer riots.
• Sentences may also be passed with the aim of protecting the public by incapacitation, which is based around the views of Lawton LJ in R v Sargeant. There are some criminals who will not change and will always remain a risk to society. These offenders must be kept in prison as long as possible to keep society safe from them, e.g. Yorkshire Ripper.
• Other examples include driving bans which would incapacitate dangerous drivers or curfew orders that would order offenders to remain at home during certain times of the day/night which would incapacitate offenders who had been caught burgling houses in the middle of the night.