Sentencing cost calculator spurs mixed reactions
Some question the usefulness of the formula.
Published Oct. 8, 2010
An online application that calculates the cost of sentences for felony cases has spurred mixed reactions among members of the justice system.
The Missouri Sentencing Advisory Commission added this feature to its sentencing-recommendation application in August. For a second-degree robbery conviction, a sentence of five years probation with enhanced supervision would cost the state almost $9,000. A five-year prison sentence for the same charge would cost almost $55,000.
Most judges already know these figures, 13th Circuit Court Judge Gary Oxenhandler said. The feature simply provides them with even more information to help them make a decision.
“You hope that if you give judges a lot of information, that they’ll come up with the right punishment for the crime,” said Oxenhandler, who is a member of the sentencing advisory commission.
Boone County Prosecuting Attorney Dan Knight said he is concerned the application gives cost concerns too much influence on a judge’s decision.
"It's just very difficult, I think, to calculate the financial cost of doing justice in these cases," Knight said.
A defense attorney, he said, might argue that a defendant who deserves incarceration should not go to prison because it would be too expensive. Columbia Trial Office District Defender Tony Manansala said judges might utilize the cost calculator because both Boone County and the state are facing budget crises.
“The state cannot afford to incarcerate as many people as they have been on low-level offenses, nonviolent offenses,” Manansala said.
Oxenhandler said the cost of a punishment is one of the least important factors judges consider.
“We’re more concerned about public safety than we are about what it costs,” he said.
In light of the state’s budget crisis, though, judges do have to take costs into account. Oxenhandler said judges and attorneys in Boone County might use the cost calculator more than anywhere else.
“Everybody’s broke right now,” he said.
Defense attorney Christopher Slusher said he didn’t think the application would have much influence on cases here in Columbia because judges already know that sentences require substantial amounts of money.
“I don’t think judges are going to consider the cost factors as much as some of the other things in the case,” Slusher said.
When the Prosecutor's Office makes a recommendation to a judge regarding a sentence, it considers factors such as the severity of the offense and the likelihood of the defendant reoffending, Knight said. It also considers the victim’s wishes and the defendant’s criminal history.
Knight said is it extremely rare for his office to recommend prison for a first-time offender committing a nonviolent crime, even if that crime is a felony.
Manansala said the cost calculator might affect borderline cases, when the judge is on the fence between sentences. The application works for all felonies, but it would probably only be used for less severe offenses such as property crimes, he said.
But, calculations for dangerous felonies such as rape and murder are available on the application. Knight said he wondered why the commission made this information available if they didn’t plan for anyone to use it.
“Then why is it available, if it won't be considered?” he said.