Discretion, Discrimination and the Rule of Law

Front Cover
Cambridge University Press, 2017 - Law - 310 pages
Sentencing: The new site of stereotyping -- The 'Two Finger' test -- Marital status of the victim -- Perpetuation of rape myths in sentencing -- Presence/absence of injuries -- The shadow of relationship on sentencing -- (a) Of 'Reciprocal passion' and 'Youthful exuberance': The case of elopement -- (b) Cases of statutory rape not involving elopement -- The (Dis)use of theories of punishment -- Deterrence -- Proportionality -- 'Ends of justice' -- Arbitrariness in sentencing: Irrelevance and inconsistency -- Using evidentiary factors in sentencing -- Mitigating factors -- 'Adequate and special reasons' -- (a) Mitigating factors cited by the Supreme Court -- (b) Mitigating factors cited by High Courts -- (i) Age as mitigating factor -- (ii) Delay in the judicial process -- (iii) Other mitigating circumstances -- Location of the crime -- Victim's age -- Aggravating factors -- Sentencing in aggravated rape -- Rape and murder -- Conclusion -- Endnotes -- 5 Myths and Stereotypes in Rape Prosecutions -- Introduction -- Rape Myths and Stereotypes: Laws and Impact on Rape Adjudication -- Identifying rape myths -- Impact of rape myths on adjudication -- Rape Law Reform -- United States -- United Kingdom -- The Impact of Rape Myths on Sentencing -- Conclusion -- Endnotes -- 6 Structuring Sentencing Discretion: Guideline Models and Approaches -- Introduction -- The History of Sentencing Discretion -- England -- United States -- The Rationale Behind Sentencing Guidelines -- Guideline Models -- Legislative regulation models -- Judicial models: Self-regulation by the judiciary -- Appellate review -- Guideline judgments -- The 'Instinctive synthesis' doctrine -- The sentencing commission model -- Numerical guidelines model -- (a) Minnesota Sentencing Guidelines -- (b) The Federal Sentencing Guidelines -- Specific guideline models: The case of Israel
 

Contents

An Introduction to the Indian Criminal Justice System
15
The Law and Practice of Rape Adjudication in India
34
An Empirical Analysis
61
Myths and Stereotypes in Rape Prosecutions
106
The Need for Structuring
161
Sentencing Guidelines for Rape
187
List of Cases Studied for Empirical Analysis
208
Templates of Format Used for Medical Examination
234
Output of Regression Analysis
258
Charts
279
Bibliography
294
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About the author (2017)

Mrinal Satish is Associate Professor of Law and Executive Director of the Centre for Constitutional Law, Policy and Governance at the National Law University, Delhi. His research interests are sentencing, gender and the law, medical jurisprudence, empirical analysis of law, excessive undertrial and pre-trial detention, and studying the impact of the criminal justice system in its interface with vulnerable and disempowered groups.

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