Evaluation of Minnesota's Felony Sentencing Guidelines

• NCJ Number: 107743
• Author(s): T D Miethe; C A Moore
• Date Published: 1987
• Length: 157 pages
• Grant Number(s): 85-IJ-CX-0054
• Agencies: NIJ-Sponsored
• Publication Type: Program/Project Evaluation

Annotation

This evaluation of the Minnesota felony sentencing guidelines enacted on May 1, 1980, examined goal attainment under the guidelines and how the guidelines have influenced charging, plea bargaining, and sentencing decisions over time.

Abstract

The study used data on felons processed in the district courts over one preguideline (1978) and three postguideline periods (1981, 1982, 1984), and data from a sample of criminal justice officials were used to supplement the quantitative analysis of changes in prosecutorial and sentencing practices over time. The main general conclusion is that the Minnesota guidelines have been effective in increasing the uniformity, neutrality, and proportionality of criminal sanctions, but gains in these areas diminished by 1984. Changes in the policy role of the commission, legislative mandates, and evolving case law which have enhanced the discretionary authority of prosecutors and judges were the major causes of the decline in guidelines' effectiveness. Recommendations pertain to how controls can be imposed on prosecutorial discretion within the guidelines themselves, the value of an active policy role by the sentencing commission, the role of appellate review, and how other States can benefit from the Minnesota experience in the construction and implementation of presumptive sentencing standards. 10 tables, table of cases, survey questionnaire, and 72-item questionnaire. (Author abstract modified)