Black Defendants Get Longer Sentences From Republican-Appointed Judges, Study Finds

[SummerMadness]

Black Defendants Get Longer Sentences From Republican-Appointed Judges, Study Finds

Judges appointed by Republican presidents gave longer sentences to black defendants and shorter ones to women than judges appointed by Democrats, according to a new study that analyzed data on more than half a million defendants.

“Republican-appointed judges sentence black defendants to three more months than similar nonblacks and female defendants to two fewer months than similar males compared with Democratic-appointed judges,” the study found, adding, “These differences cannot be explained by other judge characteristics and grow substantially larger when judges are granted more discretion.”

 

[Hammster]

I love the spin.

 

[SummerMadness]

I love the spin.

What's the spin?

 

[Hammster]

What's the spin?

I’m sure you can figure it out.

 

[Ken Rank]

Black Defendants Get Longer Sentences From Republican-Appointed Judges, Study Finds

I see spin here, too. Even if it is true, that doesn't necessarily equal racism. Do white defendants get longer sentences from Republican judges too? The article does state that the Republican appointed judges are harsher in their sentencing overall.

 

[SummerMadness]

I see spin here, too. Even if it is true, that doesn't necessarily equal racism. Do white defendants get longer sentences from Republican judges too? The article does state that the Republican appointed judges are harsher in their sentencing overall.

From the study:

Similar to our previous results, we find that Republican-appointed judges give black offenders an additional 3.0 months in prison compared to non-black offenders, relative to Democratic judges in the same district court, 65 percent of the baseline racial gap.

The answer to your question is yes, they do give longer sentences to black defendants than white defendants.

 

[Ken Rank]

From the study:

The answer to your question is yes, they do give longer sentences to black defendants than white defendants.

First offense, second, more? There are details that are missing.

Now, don't confuse me... if a white judge is giving a bad deal to ANYONE, I will stand opposed to him.

[Staff edit].

 

[Shiloh Raven]

Black Defendants Get Longer Sentences From Republican-Appointed Judges, Study Finds

Honestly, this doesn't surprise me in the least, considering everything I have experienced and witnessed during my lifetime. On a related subject, have you seen the 13TH documentary on Netflix yet? It is a real eye opener on the subject of black defendants being sentenced to prison.

 

[Hammster]

Honestly, this doesn't surprise me in the least, considering everything I have experienced and witnessed during my lifetime. On a related subject, have you seen the 13TH documentary on Netflix yet? It is a real eye opener on the subject of black defendants being sentenced to prison.

So it doesn’t surprise you they Democratic-appointed judges are softer on crime?

 

[SummerMadness]

Honestly, this doesn't surprise me in the least, considering everything I have experienced and witnessed during my lifetime. On a related subject, have you seen the 13TH documentary on Netflix yet? It is a real eye opener on the subject of black defendants being sentenced to prison.

Yes, I have seen 13th, it's a great, but sad documentary. I think Chris Hayes book, "A Colony in a Nation," is also helpful on this topic. as it details the attitudes that lead to these harsher sentences (he has a chapter discussing the criminal justice system).

I think this article also highlights some of the issues we see with systemic racism. When you benefit from a system, it is hard to change that system.
Activist Samuel Sinyangwe Sheds Light On Louisiana's Horrible Mass Incarceration Problem

Samuel Sinyangwe, an activist, data analyst, and co-founder of Campaign Zero, took to Twitter on Friday to share what he experienced when he traveled to Louisiana. The state stands out in a country filled with the statistics and stories of an unjust justice system, with the highest rate of incarceration not only in the United States, but also the world. Sinyangwe has been a prominent activist against police brutality, and despite his familiarity with the workings of the system, tweeted that he was shocked by what he found in Louisiana.

So it doesn’t surprise you they Democratic-appointed judges are softer on crime?

That's poor logic. If you were going to say they are softer on crime, then they would give lighter sentences for black and non-black defendants. Likewise, you would argue that Republican judges are soft on non-black defendants.

 

[Shiloh Raven]

So it doesn’t surprise you they Democratic-appointed judges are softer on crime?

Personally speaking, I don’t think it has much to do with being hard or soft on crime. But I can only base my opinion about this on my own personal experiences during my lifetime, which includes 26 years of experience as a Native American social justice and political activist.

 

[Hammster]

[Staff edit].

Could the headline have read:

Black Defendants Get Shorter Sentences From Democratic-Appointed Judges, Study Finds

 

[Ana the Ist]

I wasn't able to read the article, but I did read the study since its short. The first thing worth noting, is that they didn't control for the "severity of offense "...which can throw off the results entirely.

The second thing worth noting is that 2.7 months is a pretty low disparity. If you're a reasonable person who understands there's no way these things will ever be completely even...and such disparities between racial demographics exist everywhere...2.7 months is tiny.

 

[SummerMadness]

Could the headline have read:

Black Defendants Get Shorter Sentences From Democratic-Appointed Judges, Study Finds

No, because the comparison is the differences in their sentencing compare to non-black defendants. Having a smaller racial disparity is a good thing and would be expected. No difference in sentencing is not "soft on crime," it is merely treating offenders without regard to their race. The highlight of the research is that Republican-appointed judges have a higher sentencing disparity.

 

[Hammster]

For those playing along at home, if Republican-appoointed judges give longer sentences than Democratic-appointed judges, then Democratic-appointed judges give shorter sentences than Republican-appointed judges.

 

[SummerMadness]

[Staff edit].

For your headline to be true, you would need:

Republican Judge x White Defendant: 6 Months
Republican Judge x Black Defendant: 6 Months
Democratic Judge x White Defendant: 6 Months
Democratic Judge x Black Defendant: 3 Months​

However, the study found this:

Democratic Judge x White Defendant: 6 Months
Democratic Judge x Black Defendant: 6 Months
Republican Judge x White Defendant: 6 Months
Republican Judge x Black Defendant: 9 Months
​

[Staff edit].

 

[SummerMadness]

For those playing along at home, if Republican-appoointed judges give longer sentences than Democratic-appointed judges, then Democratic-appointed judges give shorter sentences than Republican-appointed judges.

Your statement is false. The comparison was the disparity in sentencing between Republican- and Democratic-appointed judges for black and non-black defendants. It was not a direct comparison of sentencing for black defendants, it was the difference in sentencing.

[Staff edit].

 

[SummerMadness]

[Staff edit].

From the news article:

Republican-appointed judges sentence black defendants to three more months than similar nonblacks and female defendants to two fewer months than similar males compared with Democratic-appointed judges.

From the study:

Similar to our previous results, we find that Republican-appointed judges give black offenders an additional 3.0 months in prison compared to non-black offenders, relative to Democratic judges in the same district court, 65 percent of the baseline racial gap.

 

[Hammster]

From the news article:


From the study:

That’s nowhere in the article.

 

[SummerMadness]

That’s nowhere in the article.

The first is a direct quote from the news article, the second is a direct quote from the study.