Psi....Pros and Cons

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Speaking about the presentence investigation report, it is necessary to point out that it is considered to be among the most important documents in the criminal justice field since it is the central source of information to sentencing judges. It is necessary to underline that its original purposes was to provide information to the court on the defendant’s personal history and criminal conduct in order to promote individualized sentencing. However, in the course of time, with the advent of punitive sentencing policies in recent years, the presentence investigation report has become more offense focused and less individualized that is actually the major problem of this component of American criminal justice system. It should be said that presentence investigation report should provide judges with detailed information about the offender in order to better learn his personality and the crime committed. As a result, it will be possible to sentence the offender in respect to his crime and taking into consideration his personality. In such a way, it would be possible to use sentencing more effectively since the proper use of the presentence investigation report could make it possible to find an individual approach to each offender and his/her particular case. Moreover, the knowledge of the offender’s background, inclinations, causes of crime, etc. would help judges better understand the extent to which the offender is guilty and select the punishment that could perfectly match his personality. Practically, it means that some offenders may need strict punishment while others may need les strict sentence, instead, the participation in some probation program may be even more effective to them than any term in jail, for instance. We can write a Custom Essay on Presentence Investigation Report for you! As for the victim impact statement, it is necessary to point out
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