Discussion 1

"Perils in Sentencing" Please respond to the following:

• Examine the fundamental manner in which proportionality and truth in sentencing impacts fair sentencing. Suggest two (2) actions that Congress could take in order to restructure sentencing to ensure fairness to both the victim and offender. Provide a rationale for your response.

• Analyze two (2) of the goals of substantive criminal law and determine their importance to the correctional system. Predict the major outcomes if the correctional system does not meet these goals. Justify your response.

Discussion 1

Two actions that I believe Congress should take in order to restructure sentencing to ensure fairness is establishing sentences that are commensurate to the harm caused the effects on the victims and on the community and rehabilitated needs of the offender. Another could be to strive to balance objectives of treating like offenders alike with allowing discretion to select correctional options that meet individual offender needs and contribute to crime reduction.

I feel like not all the time victims get the closure they need during an sentencing and some offenders come off a little easy Congress needs to make an sentencing, no exceptions fair and honest to ensure offenders not only get what they deserves but to reduce the crime that's going on out here in the streets.

I was reading a blog where a few years ago a woman from the Bronx killed her pregnant best friend, cut her open and took her baby who is now two years old. The lady just got sentenced this year to 25 to life. Me personally I don't agree with the death penalty, but in some instance I think it could be necessary. In this case I think she should have gotten the death penalty simply because of cruelty of the crime.

She stabbed the girl in the face and neck and slit her throat to keep from screaming. There is no lesson to be learned here, she simply should get what she did to the lady and be removed permanently from the little girl's life.
Substantive Criminal Law is interpreted through a body rules that dictate what a crime is an how punishment for a crime is administered.

This also defines a citizens rights and responsibilities and those behaviors that harm society as crimes and defines and describe the punishment for engaging in criminal behaviors. Two goals of substantive criminal law and deter criminal behavior and punishment wrongdoing.

These two are most important because its essential that law enforcement today do what they can to decrease the crime rate. Going above and beyond to set these strategies to fight crime and put these offenders in jail and the courts punishing them accordingly.

Even for the correctional system, their job should be to get the offenders and provide programs and rehabilitation that can possibly help these offenders understand what they have done, provide a valuable lesson but also make them feel that punishment and how the other family is feeling inside. If correctional systems are not setting strategies to reach these goals, then to me they are failing as a system and are just inside the correctional facility and continue doing exactly what he or she did out on the streets.

Discussion 2

"Families of Law" Please respond to the following:

• Suppose you are the leader of a nation that is adopting a Social Law system. Compare and contrast the major characteristics of Social Law with one (1) other family of law of your choosing. Conclude two to three (2-3) advantages to your nation incorporating Social Law as opposed to any other family of law. Provide support for your response.

• From the e-Activity, specify the key characteristics of Social Law that would contribute to a nation deciding to implement such laws as

China's rule against "rumor mongers". Examine the likelihood of the United States adopting this type of law. Provide a rationale for your response.

Discussion 2

•Suppose you are the leader of a nation that is adopting a Social Law system. Compare and contrast the major characteristics of Social Law with one (1) other family of law of your choosing. Conclude two to three (2-3) advantages to your nation incorporating Social Law as opposed to any other family of law. Provide support for your response.

Social law seems to have many great things to include everyone in decisions that were made. Common law uses cases and precedents to help guide future decisions. Past cases assist with most future decisions, and the citizens have direct input in their grand jury and trial jury roles.

The appellate courts develop law through their interpretations and decisions. With Civil law it is almost completely opposite. With civil law the appellate courts apply law with legal codes and little interpretation. Civil law does not use past cases for laws or legal codes they do it through scholarly analysis. Civil law is also governed by comprehensive codes of rules to anticipate situations. Common law seems to have more leeway with decisions. Common law will see the case as a whole, and use previous cases to help with the decision. With Civil it appears it is set by codes and that is it.

•From the e-Activity, specify the key characteristics of Social Law that would contribute to a nation deciding to implement such laws as China's rule against "rumor mongers". Examine the likelihood of the United States adopting this type of law. Provide a rationale for your response.

The likelihood of the United States adopting this type of law is very slim. The juvenile was arrested for "spreading rumors." This would fall under the freedom of speech, and anyone is entitled to their own opinion. He did not state he was going to cause any bodily harm or commit a crime.

He simply stated his own opinion about the situation. Again, this is not a crime (in the U.S.). The prisons and jails are already overcrowded as it is, if we adopted a law like that many individuals would be arrested and it would violate their rights as an American citizen.