Effective Use of Federal Sentencing Data

Session Submission Type: Complete Thematic Panel

Abstract

The United States Sentencing Commission is an independent agency in the Judicial Branch of government. Among its principal purposes is to collect, analyze, research, and distribute a broad array of information on federal crime and sentencing issues, serving as an information resource for Congress, the Executive Branch, the courts, criminal justice practitioners, the academic community, and the public. This panel will focus on the Commission’s data collection function.
The Commission makes available to the public through ICPSR and BJS, datasets on federal sentencings within each fiscal year. Commission staff will provide a brief overview of the agency, data collection methodology, the guideline application process, the interaction of the sentencing guidelines and applicable statutory mandatory minimums, an overview of the drug trafficking and fraud guidelines, and essential steps for multivariate analysis using Commission data.
The complexity of the federal sentencing guidelines, and by extension, federal sentencing data often results in researchers’ incorrect use of the data. Common mistakes include the selection of unsuitable variables for analysis, failure to control for crucial guideline-related matters (e.g., drug type), and recognition of multicollinearity among guideline variables. The panel will highlight these issues in order to caution analysts of common pitfalls using of Commission data.

Sub Unit

• Area IV. Criminal Justice Policy and Practice / 40. Prosecution, Courts and Sentencing

Individual Presentations

• Effective Use of Federal Sentencing Data - Courtney Semisch, U.S. Sentencing Commission

• Effective Use of Federal Sentencing Data - Kevin Blackwell, U.S. Sentencing Commission

• Effective Use of Federal Sentencing Data - Lou Reedt, U.S. Sentencing Commission