NCJ Number
96562
Date Published
1983
Length
137 pages
Annotation
This study analyzes State Uniform Crime Report arrest statistics for the crimes of robbery and assault for the period 1970 to 1980 and assesses the general deterrent effects of mandatory minimum sentencing statutes.
Abstract
Florida data indicate that the statute may have had an effect on the use of firearms in 1975 and 1976, when the rate of possession of firearms during the commission of aggravated assaults dropped from 122.3 to 105.7 per 100,000 inhabitants. However, data also indicate that two control States, North Carolina and Arkansas, experienced similar reductions during the same period. A 1-year downtrend in rates of firearm usage, corresponding to the year following the enactment of the mandatory sentencing statute is indicated for Delaware; however, similar reductions in rates of firearm usage also occurred in the two control States, Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Similarly, Michigan also experienced a 1-year downtrend in the year following the enactment of the mandatory minimum sentencing statutes; however, corresponding trends are also exhibited by the control States, Illinois and Wisconsin. Results do not indicate that a deterrent effect is present. Finally, additional assessment reveals that Delaware may exhibit one channeling effect: the strikingly dramatic change in the use of personal weapons, including hands, feet, and fists, in the commission of aggravated assault corresponds to the passage of the mandatory sentencing statute for firearm usage. Appendixes contain texts of the Florida, Delaware, and Michigan statutes and include 16 graphs and approximately 150 references.