Alcohol as a Sentencing Factor: A Survey of Attitudes of Judicial Officers

• NCJ Number: 157603
• Author(s): I Potas; D Spears
• Date Published: 1994
• Length: 80 pages
• Corporate Author: Judicial Cmssn of New South Wales
• Sale Source: Judicial Cmssn of New South Wales
• Publication Type: Survey
• Language: English
• Country: Australia
• Note: Monograph Series No. 8, July 1994.

Annotation

This report contains results of a survey of judicial officers in New South Wales, intended to examine how intoxication at the time of offense affects the sentencing of offenders.

Abstract

The first section explores some general issues related to alcohol and sentencing, including the relationship between alcohol and crime, the question of criminal responsibility, alcohol and driving, and the specific health and criminal justice problems posed by alcohol to aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. The survey consisted of three scenarios, a serious assault arising from a barroom brawl, a serious domestic violence incident, and an armed robbery, each of which involved intoxicated offenders. Responses from judicial officers showed that they considered intoxication as either a neutral or slightly mitigating factor. However, the extent of this response depended on the facts and circumstances portrayed in each case. 2 figures, 1 table, 31 notes, and 4 appendixes