NCJ Number
94599
Journal
University of Chicago Law Review Volume: 50 Issue: 1 Dated: (1983) Pages: 281-304
Date Published
1983
Length
24 pages
Annotation
Although West Germany's day-fine system has reduced the use of short-term imprisonment and posed few collection problems, it has failed to meet other goals. Because evidence regarding the system's effectiveness is incomplete, it is premature to recommend its adoption in the United States.
Abstract
The West German federal parliament revitalized the fine as a criminal sanction through two 1969 reforms. The first mandated that the fine be the primary sanction for crimes formerly punishable by a prison term of 6 months or less, while the second changed the calculation method so that the fine varies according to the offender's wealth and income. The court must depend on the defendant's voluntary disclosure of income and the public prosecutor's report on the offender's occupation, education, and residence for this information. The law provides several devices to obtain payment before the sanction can be converted into a prison sentence. Short-term imprisonment is now the exception rather than the rule, and virtually all offenders pay their fines. In other respects the reforms have fallen short, since short-term sentences are still common for crimes such as theft, battery, and fraud. Moreover, a study revealed that the courts lacked sufficient information to calculate fines accurately in over half the cases. If a day fine system were implemented in the United States, courts should be able to calculate fines more accurately because they have access to offenders' tax returns. Because of income distribution patterns in the United States, the day fine might create incentives for a sizeable population group to commit certain crimes. Setting a minimal day fine for each offense might resolve this problem. The article includes 127 footnotes.