Criminal sentencing in the United States

In the United States, sentencing law varies by jurisdiction. Since the US Constitution is the supreme law of the land, all sentences in the United States must conform to the requirements of the Constitution, which sets basic mandates while leaving the bulk of policy-making up to the states.

Despite the continued growth of federal criminal law, the vast majority of criminal sentencing takes place in state and local courts. Except for death penalty cases (which are exceptionally rare), juries generally have little involvement in sentencing, which is typically left to the discretion of the presiding judge. Sentences are typically pronounced by the judge in a separate hearing, after the jury (or other finder of fact) has issued findings of fact and a guilty verdict, and in some cases after the probation department has carried out a pre-sentence investigation. The structure and jurisdiction of courts within a state are typically governed by state law, as are sentences and sentencing guidelines and regimes. There is enormous substantive and procedural difference between the criminal laws of the fifty states and the various federal territories and enclaves.

Each state is very different from every other state in terms of sentencing, and even what acts are crimes, viz:

Some prisoners are given life sentences. In some states, a life sentence means life, without the possibility of parole. In other states, people with life sentences are eligible for parole. In some cases, the death penalty may be applicable; however, since the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Ring v. Arizona, a recommendation of the trial jury is required to impose a sentence of death.

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