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But the politicians aren't the ones doing the sentencing. They just write the laws. The Slate article suggests that it's the judges who are handing out increasi
by jordigh 11y ago
But the politicians aren't the ones doing the sentencing. They just write the laws. The Slate article suggests that it's the judges who are handing out increasingly Draconian sentencing. Why are judges doing that?
- phire 11y agoJudges and prosecutors are elected too (it varies from state to state) so technically they are politicians too.
- jordigh 11y agoAren't they frequently appointed or they run unopposed?
- phire 11y agoIt varies from state to state (perhaps even county to county) In some places they are appointed, in others they are elected. When they are elected, even if they run unopposed they still tend to act tough on crime. If a judge or prosecutor started acting weak, the could very quickly find themselves opposed in the next election.
- adrusi 11y agoThey're "supposed to" be appointed. This is the way it used to be and the way it constitutionally has to be at the federal level. But I think more than half of states have elected judges. True, they often run unopposed, but that doesn't free then from political pressure; if they make an unpopular decision, any lawyer could opt to run against them by simply campaigning as not the other judge. They would usually win and get a fantastic résumé boost.
- Amezarak 11y ago> if they make an unpopular decision, any lawyer could opt to run against them by simply campaigning as not the other judge In many localities there is no requirement that a judge have any prior legal training or experience. So anyone, not just any lawyer.
- admiun 11y agoIf you're interested in this, John Oliver did a piece on elected judges: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=poL7l-Uk3I8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=poL7l-Uk3I8
- Fargren 11y agoOne reason for this are mandatory minimum sentences. And in that case, it is the politicians who made the sentencing, in a way.
- happyscrappy 11y agoActually a lot of judges were very opposed to mandatory sentencing because it removes a lot of their power.
- TDL 11y agoOften times judges have their hands tied. Many minimum sentencing laws were passed in the late '80's & throughout the '90's in response to the crime waves of the era. Judges simply can't give lower sentences in many instances even if they want to. In my opinion, this is a significant contributing factor.
- deleted 11y ago[deleted]
- spacemanmatt 11y agoMake no mistake, prosecutors are politicians.