Presentation Transcript

1. TYPES OF SENTENCES

2. AGGRAVATING VS. MITIGATING FACTORS CONCERNING THE OFFENDER CONCERNING THE OFFENCE
3. DISCHARGES The most lenient sentence; A discharge is a release, and may be granted for a minor or first-time offence that does not carry a minimum sentence and for which the penalty is less than 4 years; There are 2 types of discharges: 1. ABSOLUTE DISCHARGE 2. CONDITIONAL DISCHARGE
4. DISCHARGES ABSOLUTE DISCHARGE– releasing a convicted offender (the offender is found guilty) and erasing the criminal record after one year; CONDITIONAL DISCHARGE – releasing a convicted offender under certain terms (such as a curfew), and erasing the criminal record after 3 years if the terms are met.
5. PROBATION A sentence that allows a person to live in the community under the supervision of a parole officer that comes with specific conditions to which the offender must comply; Can be given either in addition to or in place of a prison term. During probation, the offender must comply with certain conditions. There are 3 compulsory conditions: The offender must keep the peace and demonstrate good behaviour; The offender must appear in court when required; The offender must notify the court of any change of name, address, or employment. Failure to comply with the probation order can result in the order being revoked or additional terms.
6. SUSPENDED SENTENCE A judgment that is not carried out, provided certain requirements are met; Can only be imposed for offences that have no minimum punishment required by the Criminal Code. Usually given for first-time or minor offences; The offender still has a criminal record.
7. INTERMITTENT SENTENCE A prison sentence of less than 90 days served on weekends and at night; Usually given to non-violent offenders, who have steady employment and whose families depend on their ability to continue to work; When not in jail, the offender is subject to a probation order.
8. CONDITIONAL SENTENCE A prison term of less than 2 years that can be served in the community, with strict terms. Can be imposed if there is no minimum sentence; Terms are more strict than probation or a suspended sentence, including community service, or treatment for addiction.
9. ELECTRONIC MONITORING Allowing an offender to serve a sentence at home under electronic supervision from a remote location. The offender must wear an electronic bracelet at all times, which indicates their whereabouts. If they are not where they are supposed to be, an alarm goes off. THINK PARIS HILTON, LINDSAY LOHAN, ETC.
10. RESTITUTION Financial compensation to pay the victim for property loss or personal injury. Often takes the form of community service – a sentence to perform certain services in the community for a specified period of time.
11. BINDING-OVER, DEPORTATION, AND FINES BINDING-OVER is a court order to keep the peace and demonstrate good behaviour for up to 12 months – also called a “peace bond”. Not actually a sentence since no actually crime has been committed; Used to settle disputes before they escalate; No criminal offence occurs unless the peace bond is broken or the defendant refuses to be bound; DEPORTATION is a sentence of expulsion from the country; given to anyone who is not a Canadian citizen and commits an indictable offence in Canada;
12. FINES are specific amounts of money that offenders are required to pay as penalties for offences. For summary conviction offences, a maximum fine of $2000 can be imposed; Optional for indictable offences that have a minimum sentence of imprisonment and a maximum sentence of less than 5 years. Failure to pay may result in a prison term.
13. SUSPENSION OF PRIVILEGES A sentence that withholds a privilege for a specified period of time or a lifetime, such as suspending a driver’s licence for impaired driving.
14. INCARCERATION Imprisonment for a specified period of time; There are maximum sentences for each criminal offence; If the penalty for the first non-violent offence is less than 5 years, the judge is not bound to give any prison sentence and may opt for an alternative form of punishment Some serious offences carry a mandatory minimum sentence, for example, any offence involving a firearm has a minimum sentence of 4 years in prison. Offenders serve their time in either CLOSED CUSTODY – which is detention under constant guard, the most secure form of custody, or OPEN CUSTODY – where detention is supervised, and inmates are given some supervised access to the community to work;
15. INCARCERATION – LENGTH OF IMPRISONMENT Length depends on many factors: The Criminal Code requirements; Details regarding the crime and the offender; Whether multiple sentences should be served. Sentences of less than 2 years (“2 years less a day”) are served in provincial prisons; more than 2 years in a federal prison;
16. If an offender is classified as a DANGEROUS OFFENDER – they represent a threat to he physical or mental safety of others (i.e. Paul Bernardo), the Criminal Code requires that they may be held for an indefinite period in a federal prison. This is called an INDETERMINATE SENTENCE.
17. If someone is convicted of committing more than one offence at the same time, they must serve more than one sentence. CONCURRENT SENTENCES – sentences served at the same time, i.e. 2 – 4 year sentences would result in the offender serving 4 years. CONSECUTIVE SENTENCES – sentences that are served one after the other, i.e. Two 4 year sentences would result in 8 years in jail.
18. CAPITAL PUNISHMENT Existed as a punishment in Canada prior to 1962 (death by hanging); In 1976, was abolished by Parliament; In 1984 the issue was debated again, but did not pass.
19. CONDITIONAL RELEASE (PAROLE) Allows an offender to return to society under supervision in preparation for unsupervised release; ESCORTED AND UNESCORTED ABSENCES may be granted to allow offenders to participate in rehab programs, get medical treatment, or attend significant family events. All offenders are eligible for escorted absences from the time they enter prison; Maximum-security offenders are not allowed to have unescorted absences
20. DAY AND FULL PAROLE DAY PAROLE – the offender is released during the day, but must return to prison or a halfway house at night; An inmate serving a life sentence is eligible for day parole 3 years before full parole eligibility. FULL PAROLE – an offender’s complete release from custody into the community under specific conditions and supervision; Granted after 1/3 of the sentence has been served or 7 years, whichever is less The Parole Board holds a hearing to review the release request; If parole is denied, the case has to be reviewed every 2 years; If granted, the offender is assigned a supervisor and released with conditions. If any conditions are not met, the parolee (the offender) may have to return to serve out the rest of the sentence; If all conditions are met, parole ends when the original sentence would have ended.
21. PAROLE FOR MURDER Those convicted of murder have different parole rules and conditions; 1st degree murder – life in prison with no parole for 25 years; parole supervision for the rest of their lives; 2nd degree murder – parole established by the judge at the time of sentencing, between 10 and 25 years; Both are eligible for unescorted temporary absences and day parole 3 years before their full parole eligibility date; Those who serve 15 years of their sentence before they are eligible may apply for a judicial review after 15 years. called the FAINT HOPE CLAUSE – it gives the offender the faint hope that they will be released before their eligibility. Offenders who are convicted of more than one murder are not eligible for judicial review.
22. ACCELERATED REVIEW Early consideration by the parole board of an offender’s eligibility to be released; For offenders who are serving their first time in prison, and who did not commit a violent offence, drug offence, sexual offence, or criminal organization offence.
23. STATUTORY RELEASE Release of an inmate that is required by law after 2/3 of the sentence has been served; The parole board can add conditions if they deem them necessary; It can be denied if the offender is likely to commit an offence causing death or serious harm to another person, a sexual offence involving a child, or to commit a serious drug offence before the end of the sentence.