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Presentence Investigation
A presentence investigation report (PSIR) is a legal document that presents the findings of an investigation into the "legal and social background" of a person convicted of a crime before sentencing to determine if there are extenuating circumstances which should influence the severity or leniency of a criminal sentence. The PSIR is a "critical" document prepared by a probation officer via a system of point allocation, so that it may serve as a charging document and exhibit for proving criminal conduct. The PSIR system is widely implemented today. History PSIR reports trace their origins to the efforts of prison reformer John Augustus who in the 1840s began a campaign to allow discretion in sentencing to help those who were deemed undeserving of harsh sentences and could be reformed. More specifically, in the Police Court of Boston, Augustus posted bail for a man, promising the judge that the man would improve upon returning to the court and would earn a lessened sentence. The ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Probation Officer
A probation or parole officer is an official appointed or sworn to investigate, report on, and supervise the conduct of convicted offenders on probation or those released from incarceration to community supervision such as parole. Most probation and parole officers are employed by the government of the jurisdiction in which they operate, although some are employed by private companies that provide contracted services to the government. Duties and functions Responsibilities of a probation or parole officer are varied. While the majority of the public considers these officers as merely supervisors of offenders, their role within the legal system is significantly broader and more complex. While their roles vary throughout the world, they are commonly responsible for upholding conditions of supervision as sentenced by a court or other government entity which includes specific case management aimed at reducing an offender's risk to reoffend. At a minimum, they are required to po ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Charging Document
Charging may refer to: * Charging (ice hockey), when a player takes more than three steps before checking an opposing player * Battery charger, a device used to put energy into a rechargeable battery * Charging station, a device used for recharging the battery in an electric car * On a timesheet, claiming time worked under a specific task or project code * Sending an invoice See also * Charge (other) Charge or charged may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Charge, Zero Emissions/Maximum Speed'', a 2011 documentary Music * ''Charge'' (David Ford album) * ''Charge'' (Machel Montano album) * '' Charge!!'', an album by The Aqu ... * Charger (other) {{disambig ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Exhibit (law)
An exhibit, in a criminal prosecution or a civil trial, is a physical or documentary evidence brought before the jury. The artifact or document itself is presented for the jury's inspection. Examples may include a weapon allegedly used in the crime, an invoice or written contract, a photograph, or a video recording. The main concept behind correct evidence handling is that the item recovered is the same as that produced in the court room. The usual term applied to such handling is "chain of custody". The term denotes the links in the handling of the exhibit in question. For example, details of the item, the place, date, time it was recovered, and by whom it was recovered - the first link. The subsequent links in the chain refer to anyone required to handle the exhibit, mainly for identification purposes. The final link is the production of the item in court. This particular level of auditable handling is paramount when dealing with items of a forensic nature, as it reduces the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Augustus
John Augustus (c. 1785 – June 21, 1859) was an American boot maker and penal reformer. He is credited with coining the English term "probation" and is called the "Father of Probation" in the United States because of his pioneering efforts to campaign for more lenient sentences for convicted criminals based on their backgrounds. Life Augustus was born in Woburn, Massachusetts. His interest in prisoner rehabilitation began in 1841, when he was touched by the case of a man arrested for public intoxication and paid his bail, moving the judge to set the man free. Thus began Augustus' practice of paying peoples' bail. Augustus' success rate could rival - and possibly surpass - the success rate of any rehabilitation program available today. His work brought him the devotion and aid of many Boston philanthropists and organizations. Augustus' success started him on an 18-year run as the first probation officer. At his death, it was noted that of the 1,946 people he helped, only ten pr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bureau Of Prisons
The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is a federal law enforcement agency of the United States Department of Justice that is responsible for all federal prisons in the country and provides for the care, custody, and control of federal prisoners. History The federal prison system had existed for more than 30 years before the BOP was established. Although its wardens functioned almost autonomously, the Superintendent of Prisons, a Department of Justice official in Washington, was nominally in charge of federal prisons. The passage of the "Three Prisons Act" in 1891 authorized the first three federal penitentiaries: USP Leavenworth, USP Atlanta, and USP McNeil Island with limited supervision by the Department of Justice. Until 1907, prison matters were handled by the Justice Department General Agent, with responsibility for Justice Department accounts, oversight of internal operations, certain criminal investigations as well as prison operations. In 1907, the General Agent was ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Federal Bureau Of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement agency. An agency of the United States Department of Justice, the FBI is a member of the United States Intelligence Community, U.S. Intelligence Community and reports to both the United States Attorney General, attorney general and the Director of National Intelligence, director of national intelligence. A leading American counterterrorism, counterintelligence, and criminal investigative organization, the FBI has jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of Federal crime in the United States, federal crimes. Although many of the FBI's functions are unique, its activities in support of national security are comparable to those of the British MI5 and National Crime Agency, NCA, the New Zealand Government Communications Security ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
National Crime Information Center
The National Crime Information Center (NCIC) is the United States' central database for tracking crime-related information. The NCIC has been an information sharing tool since 1967. It is maintained by the Criminal Justice Information Services Division (CJIS) of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and is interlinked with federal, tribal, state, and local agencies and offices. History The NCIC database was created in 1967 under FBI director J. Edgar Hoover. The purpose of the system was to create a centralized information system to facilitate information flow between the numerous law enforcement branches. The original infrastructure cost is estimated to have been over $180 million. In the mid-1990s, the program went through an upgrade from the legacy system to the current NCIC 2000 system. A 1993 GAO estimate concluded that in addition to the costs of the upgrades, the FBI would need to spend an additional $2 billion to update its computer system to allow all users worksta ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Obstruction Of Justice
In United States jurisdictions, obstruction of justice refers to a number of offenses that involve unduly influencing, impeding, or otherwise interfering with the justice system, especially the legal and procedural tasks of prosecutors, investigators, or other government officials. Common law jurisdictions other than the United States tend to use the wider offense of perverting the course of justice. Obstruction is a broad crime that may include acts such as perjury, making false statements to officials, witness tampering, jury tampering, destruction of evidence, and many others. Obstruction also applies to overt coercion of court or government officials via the means of threats or actual physical harm, and to deliberate sedition against a court official to undermine the appearance of legitimate authority. Legal overview Obstruction of justice is an umbrella term covering a variety of specific crimes. '' Black's Law Dictionary'' defines it as any "interference with the orde ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Accept Responsibility
Acceptance of responsibility is a provision in the United States Federal Sentencing Guidelines providing for a decrease by 2 or 3 levels in offenders' offense level for admitting guilt and otherwise demonstrating behavior consistent with acceptance of responsibility, such as ending criminal conduct and associations. It amounts to a sentence reduction of about 35%. The 3-level reduction is only available to defendants with an offense level of 16 or greater, and it requires a timely guilty plea. Federal plea agreements usually include a stipulation that the government will support granting the defendant the acceptance of responsibility reduction. The guideline states, in reference to the 2-level reduction: Because the vast majority of federal criminal cases are settled by plea bargains, the application of this reduction is extremely common and has a great impact on the number of prisoner-years served altogether throughout the U.S. justice system. Research indicates that the offender' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Criminal History Score
The United States Federal Sentencing Guidelines are rules published by the U.S. Sentencing Commission that set out a uniform policy for sentencing individuals and organizations convicted of felonies and serious (Class A) misdemeanors in the United States federal courts system. The Guidelines do not apply to less serious misdemeanors or infractions. Although the Guidelines were initially styled as mandatory, the US Supreme Court's 2005 decision in '' United States v. Booker'' held that the Guidelines, as originally constituted, violated the Sixth Amendment right to trial by jury, and the remedy chosen was to excise those provisions of the law establishing the Guidelines as mandatory. After ''Booker'' and other Supreme Court cases, such as '' Blakely v. Washington'' (2004), the Guidelines are now considered advisory only. Federal judges ( state judges are not affected by the Guidelines) must calculate the guidelines and consider them when determining a sentence, but are not require ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fifth Amendment To The U
Fifth is the ordinal form of the number five. Fifth or The Fifth may refer to: * Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution, as in the expression "pleading the Fifth" * Fifth Avenue * Fifth column, a political term * Fifth disease, a contagious rash that spreads in school-aged children * Fifth force, a proposed force of nature in addition to the four known fundamental forces * Fifth of July (New York), historic celebration of an Emancipation Day in New York * Fifth (''Stargate''), a robotic character in the television series ''Stargate SG-1'' * Fifth (unit), a unit of volume formerly used for distilled beverages in the U.S. * 1st Battalion, 5th Marines * The fraction 1/5 * The royal fifth (Spanish and Portuguese), an old royal tax of 20% Music * A musical interval (music); specifically, a ** perfect fifth ** diminished fifth ** augmented fifth * Quintal harmony, in which chords concatenate fifth intervals (rather than the third intervals of tertian harmony) * Fifth ( ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Right Against Self-incrimination
The right to silence is a legal principle which guarantees any individual the right to refuse to answer questions from law enforcement officers or court officials. It is a legal right recognized, explicitly or by convention, in many of the world's legal systems. The right covers a number of issues centered on the right of the accused or the defendant to refuse to comment or provide an answer when questioned, either prior to or during legal proceedings in a court of law. This can be the right to avoid self-incrimination or the right to remain silent when questioned. The right may include the provision that adverse inferences cannot be made by the judge or jury regarding the refusal by a defendant to answer questions before or during a trial, hearing or any other legal proceeding. This right constitutes only a small part of the defendant's rights as a whole. The origin of the right to silence is attributed to Sir Edward Coke's challenge to the ecclesiastical courts and their ''ex ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
