Just deserts
The concept of "just deserts" refers to a philosophy within criminal justice that emphasizes the idea of proportionality in punishment, asserting that individuals should receive consequences that are commensurate with the crimes they have committed. Rooted in retributive justice, the term derives from an older meaning of "desert," which signifies what is deserved. This approach gained traction in response to rising crime rates, moving away from rehabilitative models that allow for more discretion in sentencing. Instead, just deserts advocates for standardized penalties aimed at ensuring that similar crimes receive similar punishments, thereby reducing disparities in sentencing.
Historically, the just deserts model is linked to classical retributivism, including principles like "an eye for an eye," and draws on philosophical ideas from thinkers such as Immanuel Kant, who argued that punishment should be based solely on the commission of a crime. This model typically considers various factors in determining appropriate punishment, including the severity of the crime, the offender's criminal history, and the harm inflicted upon victims. The concept has resonated across various cultures and has influenced criminal justice systems globally, generating ongoing discussions about fairness and justice in punishment.
Just deserts
SIGNIFICANCE: The concept of just deserts, related to the retributive philosophy of criminal justice, has gained in popularity as the crime problem in the United States has grown.
Just deserts, from an archaic form of the word "desert" meaning "what is deserved," refers to a punishment or consequence that is seen as fitting in regard to the crime or misbehavior. In many contexts the misspelling "just desserts" is accepted and even more common. The concept is part of the retributivist justice model that has deep roots in many world cultures. In addition to being a common phrase in public use it has been incorporated to varying degrees in different criminal justice systems.
In a 1976 report entitled Doing Justice criminologist Andrew von Hirsch and other members of the Committee for the Study of Incarceration called for a turning away from the then-prevailing philosophy of rehabilitation of offenders and moving toward a sentencing model that emphasizes giving criminals what they "deserve" for the particular crimes they have committed. Under the rehabilitative model, indeterminate sentencing and wide discretion on the part of sentencers are viewed as desirable. The so-called just deserts model, by contrast, shifts the focus in sentencing to the seriousness of the offender’s crime. Proponents of this approach generally favor reducing sentencing disparities and using guidelines that prescribe standardized sentences. The general aim is to give the same punishment to all individuals who commit the same crime.
The just deserts model draws some inspiration from the classical retributivist theory of punishment, which builds on concepts beginning with the well-known ancient concept of "an eye for an eye" and including theories such as that of the eighteenth-century German philosopher Immanuel Kant. According to Kant, judicial punishment "must in all cases be imposed on [the criminal] only on the ground that he has committed a crime." It is a matter of opinion and the subject of much debate as to what the appropriate punishment is for any given crime, however. Among the factors usually considered are the seriousness of the crime, the criminal’s previous record, and the amount of harm done to the criminal’s victim.
Bibliography
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Gerber, Monica M., and Jonathan Jackson. "Retribution as Revenge and Retribution as Just Deserts." Social Justice Research 26.1 (2013): 61–80. Print.
Gervasi, Alexa. "Is There Justice in 'Just Deserts?'" American Criminal Law Review. American Criminal Law Review, 8 May 2015. Web. 26 May. 2016.