Sentencing and Punishment: The Quest for Justice

Citation

Easton, S., & Piper, C. (2016). Sentencing and Punishment: The Quest for Justice (4th ed.). Oxford University Press.

Chapter Summary

The fourth edition has eleven chapters in two parts. Part A (Chapters 1–7) deals with the principles, policies and issues of sentencing. Part B (Chapters 8–11) turns to the punishment of offenders, in prison, in the community and in youth justice. Booksellers' descriptions of the book say that it examines the theoretical debates behind the headlines, covers UK sentencing and punishment, and takes a systematic approach that combines legal, philosophical and practical perspectives, with chapter summaries, discussion questions and case studies.

Chapter 1: Developing penal policy

Examines how penal policy has developed and what punishment is, along with the political, economic and social influences on it, including human rights, public opinion and the media.

Chapter 2: Structuring sentencing

Explores the tension between justice and discretion in sentencing, and the development and limits of sentencing guidelines as a way of structuring judicial discretion.

Chapter 3: Determining 'just deserts'

Presents the retributive framework for sentencing, built around culpability and harm and the idea of proportionate punishment, and criticises modern retributivism and its limits.

Chapter 4: Utility and deterrence

Considers utilitarian justifications for punishment, including deterrence, and asks how effective and how defensible deterrence-based sentencing is.

Chapter 5: Risk and danger

Addresses the management of dangerous offenders and the policy of incapacitation and public protection, looking at past and present approaches to sentencing offenders seen as dangerous.

Chapter 6: Instead of punishment?

Looks at alternatives to conventional punishment, including restorative justice, the welfare approach to young offenders and diversion for mentally disordered offenders.

Chapter 7: Impact on victims and offenders

Discusses the position of victims in sentencing and the effect of punishment on offenders, including mitigation and the wider social consequences of sentencing decisions.

Chapter 8: Justice in the modern prison

Starts Part B with the aims and conditions of imprisonment, including overcrowding, work, education and rehabilitation, together with debates on privatisation and prisoners' rights.

Chapter 9: Experiencing imprisonment

Looks at the experience of imprisonment for different groups, such as women, minority ethnic prisoners and older prisoners, and at issues of equality, discrimination and human rights.

Chapter 10: Punishment and rehabilitation in the community

Examines non-custodial sentences such as fines, community orders and suspended sentences, and the place of rehabilitation in community punishment, including changes to the probation service.

Chapter 11: Court orders for young offenders

Covers the range of sentences available for young offenders and the principles of justice and rights that apply in youth justice.

Key Concepts

Chapters 1–3: Penal policy; Structuring sentencing; Just deserts

• Penal policy: the political and social framework within which punishment and sentencing are organised.
• Sentencing guidelines: structured guidance for judges that seeks consistency while preserving some discretion.
• Just deserts: punishment proportionate to culpability and harm.

Chapters 4–7: Utility; Risk; Alternatives; Victims

• Deterrence: using punishment to discourage offending by the offender or by others.
• Incapacitation and dangerousness: restricting offenders judged likely to cause serious harm.
• Restorative justice: a process that involves victim, offender and community in repairing harm.

Chapters 8–11: Prison; Community; Youth

• Rehabilitation: efforts to reform offenders, whether in custody or in the community.
• Community orders: non-custodial sentences and their supervision.
• Youth justice: the separate principles and sentences for young offenders.

Critical Analysis

Strengths

• Principles first, then practice. Part A sets out the theoretical justifications for punishment (retribution, utility, risk, restoration) before Part B applies them to prison, community sentences and youth justice. A student can see how theory shapes institutions.
• Study aids. The publisher's blurb highlights chapter summaries, discussion questions and case studies, which suit seminar work.
• Range of experiences. Chapter 9 looks separately at different groups in prison, which places equality and human rights within the discussion of punishment rather than in a separate chapter.
• Edition history. It has been revised through four editions, with a third edition in 2012 and a fifth in 2022, so it has been kept current as sentencing law changed.

Limitations

• Focused on England and Wales. The book concentrates on UK sentencing, so readers wanting comparative or international material will need other sources.
• Dated by later changes. The 2016 edition predates the fifth edition and later changes in sentencing legislation, guidelines and probation arrangements, so check current law.
• Not a criminology survey. It does not cover the causes of crime or police and prosecution in detail, and assumes some background in how the criminal justice system works.

Where It Fits in the Course

Within this course list, Roberts's Criminal Justice: A Very Short Introduction follows a case from crime to courthouse and from prison to parole. Newburn's Criminology and The Oxford Textbook on Criminology are course textbooks on theory, crime measurement and justice institutions, and The Oxford Handbook of Criminology is a survey of modern criminology. English's Terrorism: How to Respond is a study of terrorism and state responses.

Easton and Piper are the specialist text on what happens after conviction. It is best read after a general introduction to criminal justice or criminology, when a course turns to sentencing and punishment, imprisonment and community penalties.

How to Use This Book

The book is for students of criminology, criminal justice and criminal law taking a course on sentencing or penology, and for those who want a rigorous treatment of punishment.

Read Chapters 1–4 first, since they present the theory of punishment, then select from Chapters 5–7 depending on interest in dangerousness, alternatives or victims. Part B can be read in any order; Chapters 8 and 9 go together, and Chapter 11 is the one to choose for youth justice.

Use the discussion questions to compare theories on a single case, and check current sentencing guidelines and statutes, which have changed since 2016.