TY - JOUR PY - 1998// TI - Taking the law into our own hands: Structured sentencing, fear of violence, and citizen initiatives in Washington state JO - Law and policy A1 - Steiger, John SP - 333 EP - 356 VL - 20 IS - 3 N2 - This paper examines the impact of citizen initiatives on Washington State's system of structured sentencing. Criminal justice sentencing guidelines were implemented in Washington's juvenile court system in 1978 and in its adult felony courts in 1984. In the twenty years since, both systems have experienced significant changes, many of which impact judicial and administrative discretion. Early modifications to the guidelines were driven by legislative and administrative concerns (budgeting, prison population management). More recent changes have been driven by citizen initiatives fostered as a response to public fear of crime and violence. Increasingly, the public has rejected the advice and management of adult sentencing guidelines by criminal justice professionals, and taken a direct hand through the initiative process in setting the limits of judicial and administrative discretion. As a result, structured sentencing has become more complicated and less internally consistent. It remains unclear whether this is the inevitable price of growth in single issue politics and more direct public involvement in the determination of sentencing policy

Language: en

LA - en SN - 0265-8240 UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1467-9930.00053 ID - ref1 ER -