Pre-Sentence Investigation

Pre-sentence investigations play a significant role in federal cases, helping the court determine a particular case. The pre-sentence investigation report includes information concerning the offender’s conduct, personality, educational background, and records of the offender’s prior offending patterns. The information collected during the pre-sentence investigation aids the judge in deriving a sentencing decision and informing on any corollary obligations associated with the sentence. The major thematic areas all probation officers must pay attention to include the offender’s living circumstances, caregiving responsibilities, social life, and family. The economic and educational status of the offender, including means of subsistence, employment status, qualifications and skills, and medical and health issues, including mental health, pregnancy, drug, and substance use, are also critical aspects of consideration.

Information obtained from the pre-sentence investigation process provides sentencing guidelines for judges. For instance, the probation officer must consider the offender’s financial responsibilities and liabilities when preparing the pre-sentence investigation report. Most criminal convictions attract restitution orders or monetary fines; hence, for some offenders, the judge is forced to impose confinement fees (Seiter, 2008). On the other hand, if the offenders are incapable of paying, the court might decide not to press cost-of-confinement fees.

The offender’s credentials and educational information help the court to decide on the wages such offenders will receive from prison duties. As Tata et al. (2018) point out, prison administrators recommend that offenders who lack verified education certificates attend prison-sponsored courses. On the other hand, offenders with high computer programming skills are banned from accessing computers and doing coveted clerical jobs. Therefore, information on the skills acquired by the offender helps the court and prisons to place administrative rules that might deny offenders with a past record of crimes related to wireless networks and sophisticated computer programming camp placement.

The substance abuse section helps document the offender’s history of alcoholism or drug abuse, which enables the court and prison department to make arrangements for treatment. The prison administration is authorized to reduce the offender’s sentence by twelve months following their completion of the drug treatment program while in incarceration (Robinson, 2017). Therefore, offenders must issue documentation confirming that they were struggling with substance abuse before being imprisoned. However, offenders who lack an understanding of the importance of providing honest information during pre-sentence investigations conceal details concerning drug abuse because they believe that providing this information could tarnish their image during sentencing (Seiter, 2008). On the contrary, failure to disclose a history of drug abuse limits offenders from accessing beneficial programs, which could reduce their sentences.

Documenting the offender’s medical conditions or health problems during the pre-sentence investigation influences housing assignments. If the offender has ailments such as weak knees or a bad back, it might prevent them from performing specific duties or climbing on a top bunk (Tata et al., 2008). Therefore, offenders need to present their medical records to support their medical conditions, as this helps them to self-advocate when their imprisonment terms begin. For instance, a letter from the doctor verifying that the offender has weak knees or a bad back helps them get a lower bunk pass. This pass will be beneficial to offenders who are unable to climb on a top bunk. Additionally, employment records influence judgment by disclosing the offender’s work habits (Tata et al., 2008). For instance, offenders with extensive work records can be assigned to specific jobs within the prison.

Conclusively, pre-sentence investigation engages offenders, their significant others, partnership organizations, employers, families, and the community at large in obtaining information that is used to determine the impact of the judgment on the offender. Consequently, this makes courts and correctional facilities more impactful to offenders and society. Additionally, verifiable information regarding the offender helps formulate plausible theoretical explanations concerning the offender’s criminal behaviour. This in turn, enables both the prison administration and the judge to understand the offender’s personality in relation to the committed crime. Therefore, all criminal justice systems need to consider undertaking a pre-sentence investigation to get information that is essential in determining the mode of a sentence.

References

Robinson, G. (2017). Stand-down and deliver: Pre-Sentence Reports, quality and the new culture of speed. Probation Journal, 64(4), 337-353.

Seiter, R. P. (2008). Corrections: an introduction (p. 576). Pearson Prentice Hall.

Tata, C., Burns, N., Halliday, S., Hutton, N., & McNeill, F. (2008). Assisting and advising the sentencing decision process: The pursuit of ‘quality ‘ in pre-sentence reports. The British Journal of Criminology, 48(6), 835-855.

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