CJ 230 Module 7 Project Two Nick B
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School
Southern New Hampshire University *
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Course
230
Subject
Political Science
Date
Dec 6, 2023
Type
docx
Pages
4
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CJ 230 Project Two Template Memo to the Judicial Ethics Advisory Committee
To:
Judicial Ethics Advisory Committee
From:
Nicholas Barracato
Date:
October 14
th
, 2023
Subject:
Discretionary Actions of Judge
I am the public representative of Emily Doe and her family. I am writing to express concern regarding the discretionary decisions and actions made by the judge in the recent conviction of the defendant in Miss Doe’s case. I would like to express my concern regarding the
following:
In a recent case involving Miss Doe, the perpetrator was sentenced to six months in jail and to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life. We feel that this sentence was not severe enough for the crime that was committed against Miss Doe. In California Penal Code 26(a) (2-4),
it states, “Unless otherwise noted, rape is punishable by imprisonment for 3, 6, or 8 years, as well
as a fine not to exceed $70 (to be paid towards AIDS education)” if convicted of rape which the perpetrator was, indeed, convicted. It also states in clause 4, “Where a person is at the time unconscious of the nature of the act, and this is known to the accused. As used in this paragraph, “unconscious of the nature of the act” means incapable of resisting because the victim meets any one of the following conditions: (A) Was unconscious or asleep. (B) Was not aware, knowing, perceiving, or cognizant that the act occurred.” Which we feel that Miss Doe was both unconscious and unaware of the sexual acts that she was a victim too. We, being the family of the
victim and the public representative of Miss Doe, feel that the discretion used to give the perpetrator such a light sentence was irresponsible and an abuse of power. It was noted that the
judge had a connection to same California education institution as the perpetrator which we feel, whether consciously or unconsciously, may have allowed bias to play a part in the sentencing.
We feel the sentence imposed on the perpetrator shines a negative light on the criminal justice system and will not only impact the victim and the victim’s family but also the community and set a precedent for future sexual assault crimes. Miss Doe will bear the scars of this crime for the rest of her life whether that be physically, mentally, or emotionally and forever live with the trauma this man caused her and her family. She will also live knowing that her perpetrator will be free to walk the streets in just 6 months and live with the fear that he may be close by in the near future. As for the precedence it sets, men who commit similar crimes against woman, not only in this community but in the states across America, will have this case to site when requesting leniency. It also reinforces the stigma that women are not believed when they come forward and are made to believe that their actions, such as what they were wearing, how much they drank that night, whether they verbally said “no” or not, etc. played a role in allowing such a disgusting act of sexual abuse to take place. The sentence given to the perpetrator confirms the belief that if you are a well-off male with the right connections, anything can be looked at through rose color lenses and be shown leniency. The impact of the discretion that was used by the criminal justice system will be huge for our community and for society nationwide. We cannot state it enough that the sentences given out by judges set legal precedents and can be used in other cases in the future. “Every ruling from every court creates the possibility of setting a judicial precedent. That means a case that starts in state court, and then moves to the federal system, could generate up to six different potential precedents for future situation.” (Regoli, N, 2019). In Miss Doe’s case, the judge relied on the pre-sentence report which recommended a jail sentence of less than a year of confinement
and against the prosecution’s recommendation of a sentence of six years in state prison for the crime. In future cases, legal counsel will now look at this case and present it to the judge as a reference point for sentencing in similar sexual assault cases which will lead to more women declining to press charges due to the fear of their perpetrator not getting a sufficient sentence or simply because they feel the justice system will not take their case of sexual assault seriously. We
are a country that takes pride in moving forward as a society but this sentence and the precedent it sets forces the justice system to look backwards instead of looking toward the future. We feel that if the judge would have taken the prosecutions recommendation of 6 years in state prison that it would have shown the victim, the victim’s family, the community, and society as a whole that sexual assault will not be tolerated no matter the perpetrator’s status, finances, or connections and would deter others from engaging in this kind of criminal behavior in the future.
We also feel that on a personal level that Miss Doe would feel heard and have faith in the justice system as a woman in America.
Thank you for your time.
Sincerely,
Nicholas Barracato
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References
:
1.)
California Legislative Information. (2013). Penal Code Section 261. Retrieved from
https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?
sectionNum=261.&lawCode=PEN
Leagle. (2019). People v. Turner. Retrieved from https://www.leagle.com/decision/incaco20180808037
2.)
Regoli, Natalie. (2019), 16 Advantages and Disadvantages of Judicial Precedent, ConnectUS, https://connectusfund.org/6-advantages-and-disadvantages-of-judicial-
precedent