NCJ Number
87490
Date Published
1982
Length
10 pages
Annotation
Islamic law provides for both mandatory and discretionary sentences that are individualized, applied equally to all, and consistent with law, and provision is made for protecting the rights of the offender under the threat of and implementation of punishment.
Abstract
Islamic law divides crime into three categories: (1) Hudud, which are acts prohibited by God and punished by defined mandatory penalties; (2) Quesas crimes, which have a specified punishment in the Qu'ran and Sunna, with the decision to inflict it resting with the victim's closest kin as the avenger of the physical harm done to the victim; and (3) Ta'azir crimes, which include all crimes for which there are no specified penalties in the Qu'ran or Sunna, such that the judge is given discretion in sentencing. Punishment of whatever category must be individualized, meaning that responsibility for the crime must be borne by the offender alone without respect to his/her social, economic, or political status. Discretionary punishment under Ta'azir may take into account such factors as the offender's character and the circumstances of the offense. Although there is an increased emphasis on the rehabilitation of the offender in Islamic law, sentencing is intended to carry a punitive element that will deter recidivism and potential offenders. Under Quesas penalties, the state supervises all punishment, even though it may be applied by the victim's kin, so as to ensure that it is not harsher than intended. Pain is kept at a minimum and torture is prohibited. The law provides for compensation to an offender for every unjust injury caused from error in the execution of punishment. When an offender is convicted of several crimes, the punishments are applied concurrently or as one penalty, and imprisonment is intended to be restrictive without being inhumane.