NJ Report on Sentencing Commissions

One of the major functions of this blog will be to identify and disseminate the latest reports of interest to corrections and sentencing types. We hope that you will let us know when you have or know about these minor treasures so we can make sure everyone knows about them. In the meantime, we want to remind you about one of the best recent reports that you may have missed or need reminding about. In June the New Jersey Commission to Review Criminal Sentencing put out a report documenting the need and importance of a permanent sentencing commission in the state. In so doing, it excellently made the general case for sentencing commissions in general. (Disclaimer: The report gave prominence to a report we did when I was directing the Wisconsin Sentencing Commission.) If your state is considering a commission, or doing away with one, this report will be one of the bigger bullets in your gun. (Of course, if you have a commission and it needs this report, then the odds are you haven't been much of a commission to start with, at least as defined herein.) In any case, we're going to add it to the list of important "what you need to know if you want to do a good commission" documents we'll put up next week. This will give you a head start. Enjoy.