Covin Jr, L. (2012). Homelessness, poverty, and incarceration: The criminalization of despair.
Journal of Forensic Psychology Practice, 12(5), 439-456.
The author notes that most of the prisons and jails in the United States are in bad condition, the fact which is not known to the general public. The inmates in the facilities are also subjected to inhumane treatment, in contravention of the fair justice principles. The United States is the industrialized country with the highest rates of incarceration according to the National Institute of Corrections. The author opines that conditions such as homelessness, addiction, mental illness, and poverty are contributors to predisposition towards criminal tendencies. The article creates a correlation between the rates of incarceration across the country with the conditions under which the inmates lived prior to being committed to correctional facilities. The author also notes that there exists juxtaposition in the criminal justice system between rehabilitation and punishment, especially evident in light of the aforementioned social conditions. The efficacy of the approach towards corrections is therefore complicated by the intricacies that contribute to incarceration in the first place, given that some demographics are more likely than others to be imprisoned.
Hayes, T.O., & Barnhorst, M. (2020). Incarceration and Poverty in the United States.
Retrieved forum https://www.americanactionforum.org/research/incarceration- and-poverty-in-the-united-states/#edn32
Hayes and Barnhorst (2020) observe that the number of people in United States correctional facilities is about 2.2 million people. About half of the individuals incarcerated across the country comprise those with unpaid fines and debt, the persons held for non-violent drug offences, and the individuals awaiting trial but are unable to post their bail. The high rates of imprisonment are promoted by poverty and stringent legal action, both of which have played a part in disproportionately increasing the number of persons from low income and minority groups who end up in prison. The authors argue that the only ways to reduce incarceration rates in the United States are to reduce poverty by bridging income inequality, dealing with racial bias, and cutting back on the harshness of sentences for specific crimes that disproportionately target low-income demographics.
Leslie, E. & Pope, N. G. (2017). The Unintended Impact of Pretrial Detention on Case Outcomes: Evidence from New York City Arraignments.
Journal of Law & Economics 60, 529-557.
The article looks at the detainees who are unable to post bail for pre-trial and the inadvertent impact of pretrial detention on case outcome. The authors estimate the number of daily pre-trial detainees to be more than 40,000 Americans. Leslie and Pope (2017) investigate the impact of these pre-trial detainments by analyzing the outcome of criminal cases in New York City. Their data analysis reveals that failure to post bail increases likelihood of conviction by 13 percent for felony defendants. These findings reiterate the plight of the poor who get sentenced in court as compared to the rich. Poverty increases the likelihood of conviction and incarceration.
Lofstrom, M. & Raphael, S. (2016). Crime, the Criminal Justice System, and Socioeconomic Inequality.
Journal of Economic Perspectives, 30(2), 103-126.
The article analyzes the trends between crime patterns and criminal justice sectioning among the poor and minority communities. The authors argue that there has been a disproportionate pattern in the decline crime vis-à-vis criminal justice sanctioning. Although crime rates have dropped over past decade, the poor still form the majority in the prisons, probation, and parole institutions. Many of these low-income offenders are from African American communities. The findings of this article reaffirm the prevalent notion that the American criminal justice system is bedeviled with class and racial bias. The article will, therefore, be valuable in discussing how socioeconomic bias harms the poor and minority communities in accessing justice.
Reiman, J., & Leighton, P. (2020). The rich get richer and the poor get prison: Thinking critically about class and criminal justice. Routledge.
The book discusses the issue of economic inequality in the criminal justice system. It questions why the majority of inmates in American prisons are the poor members of the society, while, at the same time, the criminal justice system protects the rich who are responsible for various illegal acts, including white-collar crimes that have a significant adverse impact on the wellbeing of the communities. It also reviews the socioeconomic bias that manifest when the rich and the poor commit the same crimes (yet receive different imprisonment terms) as well as when the elite use executive positions to engage in activities that result in mass victimization. The authors present evidence to demonstrate that the criminal justice system contradicts citizens’ basic rights that it ought to protect. In addition to the evidence, the book provides theoretical explanation why class bias is flourishing in the American criminal justice system. The book relies on recent data on crime, victimization, incarceration, and income inequality. It also employs statistics that compares harms caused by criminal activity vis-à-vis dangerous corporate actions. This book will, therefore, help in presenting the evidence and theoretical explanations of socioeconomic bias in the criminal justice system.
Schmitt, G. R., Reedt, L., & Blackwell, K. (2017). Demographic differences in sentencing: An update to the 2012 Booker Report. United States Sentencing Commission. Retrieved from
https://www.ussc.gov/sites/default/files/pdf/research-and-publications/research- publications/2017/20171114_Demographics.pdf
The article states that there is a considerable connection between the length of sentences and various demographic factors. One of the findings was that black male offenders were issued longer sentences than their white counterparts. The analysis also indicated that the difference in sentence lengths for the two groups was constantly widening. A significant contributor to this gap was found to be non-government sponsored departures and variances. The authors found that it is way more unlikely for a black male to get a non-downward departure or variance as compared to their white counterparts. Even with variance in sentences, black males were more likely to receive worse conditions than white males. The analysis did not find any correlation between a violent history for the offender and the demographic gap in sentencing, but still black males received longer sentences than white males. Female offenders, regardless of their race were noted to receive shorter sentences than male offenders, including the white males who got the shortest sentences among men.
Stauffer, E. (2021). Plea Bargains: Justice for the Wealthy and Fear for the Innocent.
Brigham Young University Prelaw Review, 35(1), 14.
The author evaluates how the differences in socioeconomic status impact the practice of plea bargain. Stauffer (2021) begins by clarifying that the Supreme Court through its decision in Griffin v. Illinois, 351 U.S. 12, 19 (1986) has made it clear that the criminal justice system should be intolerant to socioeconomic bias and ensure equal access justice. The state must take necessary measures to ensure that the poor have equal access to justice. Despite this Supreme Courts assertion, the author observes that plea bargain has been used to deny the poor a fair and equal access to justice. The author also notes that prosecutors coerce the poor into waiving their right to trial in exchange for a plea bargain agreement. Since courts have left to the states to determine the appropriate actions to remedy any flaws in access to justice, the author suggests some of the ways that states can employ to ensure equal access to justice regardless of socioeconomic status. This article will, therefore, help in proposing some of the ways that decision makers can deal with the class inequality prevalent in the criminal justice system.
FAQ
Why is the United States ranked number one in incarceration amongst all the industrialized countries of the world?
Such factors as poverty, homelessness, and addiction, combined with inflexible sentencing laws, account for the high rates of imprisonment among people with low incomes.
How would inability to pay bail affect the case outcome?
Those who cannot afford bail tend to have higher conviction rates; this is often due to the fact that pretrial detention pushes them into pleading guilty.
Racial bias serves what purpose in sentencing?
There are studies indicating that Black men receive longer sentences than white men for the same crimes and are less likely to benefit from leniency in sentencing.
What reforms might be envisioned to help diminish these disparities?
Key reforms include reducing income inequality, reassessing sentencing laws, and ensuring equal access to legal representation for all.
