What is the aim of rehabilitation?

9. What policy of criminal sentencing does the public sup­port?

10. What are the types of incarceration sentences? Name them.

Task 1.22 A. Study the information on sentencing practices around the United States presented by the US federal government's Bureau of Justice Statistics:

What kind of sentence can a criminal defendant expect if found guilty as charged? To answer this question, the federal government's Bureau of Justice Statistics has conducted a number of national surveys.

As Table 1 indicates (see below), people who commit the most serious crimes have strong possibility of receiving an incarceration sentence. However, a surprising number of convicted felons receive a sentence of probation or community supervision only: 5 percent of convicted murderers, 14 percent rapists, 25 percent of burglars, and 36 percent of those convicted on drug posses­sion charges did not receive incarceration.

The results of surveys also indicate that the national average sentence for typical felony offences to a state prison is about six years. As might be expected, offenders committing the most serious crimes – rape, murder, and robbery – received the longest maximum sentences. The average sentence for murder is about twenty years; for rape – thirteen; for robbery – ten. However, inmates сould expect to serve less than half their given sentence behind bars, most being granted early release via parole, time off for good behavior or a combination of both.

Table 1.