Discretion and Disagreement
A Longitudinal Study of Departures Under Presumptive and Advisory Sentencing Guidelines
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21308652 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Amanda R Witwer (0000-0002-6628-7281, Michigan State University, East Lansing, USA, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 71 |
| Issue | 11 |
| Pages | 3452-3477 |
| Publication date | 2025-10-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Crime & Delinquency (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0011-1287 • E-ISSN: 1552-387X |
| Publisher | SAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US) |
| DOI | 10.1177/00111287231218701 |
| OpenAlex | W4390144117 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 32 |
Policy disagreements have been overlooked as a driver of departure in state sentencing guideline systems. The current study uses the relaxation of Michigan’s sentencing guidelines as a case study for investigating how increases in sentencing discretion affect the use of departures. The analysis focuses on sentencing for the highest crime classes as potential sites of policy disagreement. Results reveal a significant increase in the monthly rate of downward departure and growing variability in departure usage under advisory guidelines. Elevated downward departure rates and differences in the likelihood of downward departure by offense type point to judicial disagreement with guideline sentencing recommendations. Patterns in departure are a valuable source of feedback on guidelines that should inform routine modifications
Actuarial science · Affect (linguistics) · Criminology · Discretion · Economics · Guideline · Judicial discretion · Judicial review · Political science · Sentence · Sentencing guidelines · Computer Science · Crime Patterns and Interventions · Criminal Justice and Corrections Analysis · Law · Psychology · Psychopathy, Forensic Psychiatry, Sexual Offending
Interrupted time series regression for the evaluation of public health interventions
Sentencing disparity and departures from guidelines
Distribution of the Estimators for Autoregressive Time Series with a Unit Root
Sentencing Guidelines
The Growth of Incarceration in the United States
Racial, Ethnic, and Gender Disparities in Sentencing
Recent Developments and New Directions in Sentencing Research
Assessing determinate and presumptive sentencing—Making research relevant
Fundamentally Flawed?”
United States V. Booker as a Natural Experiment
Mismatch of Guidelines and Offender Danger and Blameworthiness Departures as Policy Signals from the Courts
Criminal Courts as Inhabited Institutions
Forty Years of American Sentencing Guidelines
Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Sentencing Departures Across Modes of Conviction
Sentencing and Unwarranted Disparity
Contextual Disparities in Guidelines Departures
U.S. Attorneys and Substantial Assistance Departures
The Social Context of Guidelines Circumvention
Taking Time Seriously
The Use and Transformation of Formal Decision-Making Criteria
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |