Augmented Federal Probation, Sentencing, and Supervision Information System, 1985
Description
The United States Sentencing Commission, established by the
98th Congress, is an independent agency in the judicial branch of
government. The Commission recommends guidelines prescribing the
appropriate form and severity of punishment for offenders convicted of
federal crimes. These data were collected to determine whether
sentencing disparities existed and whether the guidelines were
adequate. Basic information in the collection includes a description of
the offense, characterization of the defendant's background and
criminal record, method of disposition of the case, and sentence
imposed. Felony and misdemeanor cases are included while petty offense
cases are excluded. Three types of additional information were used to
augment the existing data: (1) more detailed offense and offender
characteristics identified by the United States Sentencing Commission
but coded by federal probation officers, (2) actual time served in
prison from the SENTRY data file of the United States Bureau of
Prisons, and (3) information necessary to estimate prospective release
dates from the hearing files of the United States Parole Commission.
The unit of analysis is the defendant.