NCJ Number
107171
Journal
Law and Contemporary Problems Volume: 47 Issue: 4 Dated: (Autumn 1984) Pages: 269-286
Date Published
1984
Length
18 pages
Annotation
This paper examines four distinct definitions of discretion used outside and within the criminal justice system and considers their appropriateness for what is involved in criminal justice decisionmaking.
Abstract
The four senses in which the concept of discretion is used are discretion as wisdom, discretion as managerial authority, discretion as personal input, and discretion as decisionmaking power. Discretion as wisdom is seldom used to apply to decisionmaking by criminal justice personnel, since the use of discretion in a legal context may or may not constitute sound judgment. The other three concepts of discretion may be prominent in varying degrees in criminal justice decisionmaking, and their distinctiveness should not be blurred in the tendency to apply the single term 'discretion' to all forms of criminal justice decisionmaking. A distinction should be made between prerogative and discretion. Prerogative refers to decisionmaking intrinsically free of regulation; whereas, discretion implies the possibility of its being limited by rules and regulations. There may be occasions when criminal justice decisionmakers claim a prerogative, i.e., the right to make a decision based entirely on personal judgment unbound by any guidelines or regulations. Generally, however, criminal justice decisionmaking is viewed by the public and criminal justice personnel themselves as responsive to various parameters that define options. 46 footnotes.