Home -> Law Blog Directory -> Criminal Law Blogs -> Sentencing Law and Policy

Criminal Law

: Sentencing Law and Policy

A telling example of a victim prompting a lighter sentence

By Douglas A. Berman

I have often asserted that allowing victims to have a say at sentencing might sometimes prompt a more away from harsh imprisonment terms.  And this story from Tennessee showcases this reality:A man guilty of vehicular homicide will not spend any time in prison following an unusual act of forgiveness in open court. ?I do forgive you,? Jana Bice tearfully told Jeremiah Mann, the person who killed her father when his SUV struck Dwight Brooks? car in March 2004 in Chattanooga. ?My father was a wonderful man,? Ms. Bice continued during Mr. Mann?s sentencing hearing Monday. ?But I think (Mr. Mann) is remorseful. I don?t think my dad would want him to sit in prison.? Mr. Mann, 28, instead received a 10-year suspended sentence with the stipulation that he spend the next 30 weekends at the Silverdale Detention Center...continue to full post

Full post as published by Sentencing Law and Policy on June 04, 2008 (boomark / email).