Exploring the Mandatory Life Sentence for MurderPDF电子书下载

Introduction 1

Overview 2

The Argument 2

Overview of the Volume 3

1: Defining Murder and Other Forms of Criminal Homicide 5

Overview 5

Ⅰ. Some Preliminary Considerations 6

Ⅱ. The Law's Reflection of the Seriousness of Homicides 8

Ⅲ. The Most Serious Forms of Criminal Homicide as Defined by Other Jurisdictions 13

Ⅳ. The Over-inclusivity and Under-inclusivity of Murder in England and Wales 16

Ⅴ. Conclusions 23

2: Origins of the Mandatory Life Sentence for Murder 25

Overview 25

Ⅰ. The Abolition of the Death Penalty 25

Ⅱ. Conclusion 35

3: The Mandatory Life Sentence for Murder: the Status Quo 36

Overview 36

Ⅰ. The Evolution of the Mandatory Life Sentence 36

Ⅱ. The Legal Construction of the Mandatory Life Sentence 39

Ⅲ. The Meaning of Life: The Mandatory Life Sentence in Practice 48

Ⅳ. Release of Mandatory Lifers on Licence 50

Ⅴ. Conclusions 54

4: Making the Case For and Against the Mandatory Life Sentence 55

Overview 55

Ⅰ. The Uniqueness of Murder 55

Ⅱ. The Consequences of the Law's Failure to Ensure that Murder is Uniquely Heinous 56

Ⅲ. The Need to Maintain Public Confidence in the Criminal Justice System 58

Ⅳ. Public Protection and Dangerousness 60

Ⅴ. The Need to Distinguish between Murder and Manslaughter 62

Ⅵ. Problems in Assessing the Correct Length of Determinate Sentences 62

Ⅶ. Further Reasons for Abandoning the Mandatory Life Sentence 63

Ⅷ. Conclusions 65

5: Public Knowledge of Trends in Crime and Punishment 66

Overview 66

Ⅰ. Why are Public Views Relevant? 66

Ⅱ. Why Has the Subject been Overlooked? 69

Ⅲ. Deficiencies of Opinion Polls as a Measure of Public Opinion 70

Ⅳ. Murder as a Special Case 72

Ⅴ. Surveys of Attitudes to the Death Penalty 73

Ⅵ. Our Research 74

Ⅶ. Public Knowledge of Murder Trends and the Mandatory Life Sentence 76

Ⅷ. Murder Trends in England and Wales: Perceptions and Reality 78

Ⅸ. Perceptions of Time Served in Prison by Offenders Convicted of Murder 81

Ⅹ. Public Estimates of Life Licence Re-offending Statistics 84

Ⅺ. Knowledge Levels of the Mandatory Life Sentence in Focus Groups 86

Ⅻ. Conclusions 86

6: Public Attitudes to Sentencing in Cases of Murder 88

Overview 88

Ⅰ. Poll Trends in Attitudes to Sentencing for Murder 88

Ⅱ. Previous Research on Public Attitudes to Sentencing in Cases of Murder 90

Ⅲ. Purposes of Sentencing 91

Ⅳ. Perceptions of Sentencing Leniency 92

Ⅴ. Public Reaction to Sentencing in Specific Cases of Murder 93

Ⅵ. Public Reaction to'Joint Enterprise'Murder 100

Ⅶ. Comparisons with Other Jurisdictions 103

Ⅷ. Conclusions 105

7: Exploring the Relationship between Information and Attitudes to Sentencing 106

Overview 106

Ⅰ. Effects of Information on Attitudes: Some Prior Research Findings 107

Ⅱ. Conclusion 116

8: Reforming the Sentence for Murder: the Way Forward 117

Introduction 117

Ⅰ. The Case Against the Status Quo 117

Ⅱ. Objectives of the Scheme 118

Ⅲ. Some assumptions Underlying the Model 119

Ⅳ. Towards a More Principled Sentencing Regime 119

Ⅴ. Three Sentence Categories: (Ⅰ) Life Without Parole; (Ⅱ) Life With Parole; (Ⅲ) Fixed Terms of Imprisonment 121

Ⅵ. Judicial Discretion 136

Ⅶ. A Necessary Procedural Adjustment 138

Ⅷ. Mitigating Factors 139

Ⅸ. Sentence Reduction for a Guilty Plea 140

Ⅹ. Public Legal Education 141

Ⅺ. Coda 141

Appendix A: Comparative Approaches to the Definition and Sentencing of Murder 143

Appendix B: Comparison of Schedule 21 with the Practice Direction 153

Appendix C: Survey Instrument 156

Bibliography 163

Index 171