Impact > Sentencing Attitudes Survey

Sentencing Attitudes Survey

When it comes to sentencing offenders, the American public is neither a “softie” nor a “hard liner.” An NCSC survey of 1,502 random adults found that although the public still favors tough prison sentences for violent offenders, it also believes that society would be better served with alternative sentences, such as probation and drug treatment, that help nonviolent offenders turn their lives around. Current sentencing practices are also widely seen as being unfair to minorities, non-English speakers, and low-income offenders.