Article
The Impact of Criminal Defendants’ Opioid Use Disorder on Judges’ Sentencing Recommendations
Journal for Advancing Justice
(2019)
Abstract
Individuals with substance use disorder continue to be disproportionately represented in
the criminal justice system. This trend is particularly pronounced among those with opioid
use disorder (OUD). Given the rising rates of opioid use among arrestees specifically,
this study examined the impact of a defendant’s reported OUD on sentencing outcomes
following a robbery conviction. United States federal and state criminal court judges (N
= 67) provided sentencing recommendations and generated perceptions of a hypothetical
defendant with (1) reported heroin use, (2) reported prescription pain reliever use, or (3) no
reported OUD. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) revealed revealed that a criminal defendant
with either of the OUD diagnoses was viewed as more likely to reoffend and less capable of
logical reasoning than a defendant with no reported history of OUD. These findings suggest
that defense attorneys may more effectively support clients with OUD by introducing the
defendant’s diagnosis during sentencing, with a focus on the benefits of rehabilitation and
on addressing judges’ concerns regarding recidivism. Additionally, ongoing research efforts
to identify empirically supported treatment that targets criminogenic risk and relapse may
offer further support.
Keywords
- Criminal justice,
- Substance use disorder,
- Opioid use,
- Rehabilitation,
- Recidivism
Disciplines
Publication Date
July, 2019
Citation Information
David DeMatteo, Alisha Desai, Kirk Heilbrun and John Rotrosen. "The Impact of Criminal Defendants’ Opioid Use Disorder on Judges’ Sentencing Recommendations" Journal for Advancing Justice Vol. 2 (2019) p. 55 - 70 Available at: http://works.bepress.com/david_dematteo/32/