The Depravity Standard II: Developing a measure of the worst of crimes

Michael Welner, Kate Y. O'Malley, James Gonidakis, Alisha Saxena and James Burnes

Journal of Criminal Justice, 2018, vol. 55, issue C, 25-34

Abstract: Aggravating factors in United States criminal codes, such as “heinous,” “atrocious,” “cruel,” “vile,” or “depraved,” distinguish elements of a crime that warrant more severe sentencing. These terms remain vaguely defined and arbitrarily applied. The Depravity Standard research was designed to develop a measure of societal standards for what elements make a crime depraved.

Keywords: The Depravity Standard; Heinous, atrocious, and cruel (HAC); Aggravators; Sentencing reform; Crime classification (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:jcjust:v:55:y:2018:i:c:p:25-34

DOI: 10.1016/j.jcrimjus.2017.12.009

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