Generally, a criminal prosecution ends when the defendant - the person convicted of committing a crime - receives his punishment. This is often called the "sentencing phase" of a criminal prosecution, and the same thing happens regardless if the defendant was convicted by jury or pleaded guilty as part of plea bargain. At this stage of the process, the defendant finds out if, for example:
- He has to pay fine
- He's going to jail, and for how long, or
- He has to pay back what he took
Types of Sentences
The sentence you may get depends upon the seriousness of the crime. Possible sentences include:
- Paying a fine. This is the usual punishment for less-serious crimes (called "misdemeanors" or "infractions"), such as traffic tickets and theft of small amounts of money or goods, like shoplifting. You may, however, have to pay a fine and go to jail, in some cases
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Jail or prison time. This is usually the sentence for committing a felony under state or federal law, like armed robbery
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Restitution. This means paying back what you took from the crime victim, or pay for the victim's hospital and medical bills
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Probation is when you're not sent to jail or prison so long as you "play by the rules." Those rules (called "terms of probation") usually require that you don't commit any more crimes, get and keep a job and make weekly visits to a probation officer. If you break one of the rules, the sentencing judge can impose the original sentence and send you to jail. Parole is similar. Here, you're released from jail early, provided that you follow your conditions of parole - again, like not committing another crime. If you do, you may be sent back to jail to finish your sentence
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Alternative sentences. These include things like community service - where you have to pick-up trash along a highway, for example - house arrest, or the completion of drug and alcohol abuse program. These sentences are usually given to people who committed a misdemeanor or are first-time offenders
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Death. This is the ultimate punishment, and it's reserved for the most serious crimes, like murder
These sentences may or may not apply in your case. For the most part, it depends on if you were convicted in state or federal court. For example, not all states have the death penalty, but it's a possible sentence for some federal crimes. Likewise, probation may not available in your state if you're a repeat offender. Check the state or federal laws that apply to your case, or talk to your attorney, to see what types of sentences you could get.
Who Decides the Sentence and When?
As a general rule, regardless of whether you're in a state or federal court, a sentencing judge decides the punishment. Juries typically don't decide the sentence. However, there's an exception when it comes to capital cases - when the death penalty is possible. In most death penalty cases, a jury must be allowed to decide if a defendant should be put to death or sentenced to life in prison. Usually, the jury must recommend imposing the death penalty.
In most criminal cases, especially those involving misdemeanors and plea agreements, sentencing takes place as soon as you're convicted. This may be the same day that a judge or jury finds you guilty or you enter a guilty plea, or it may be a day to two later. It happens quickly here because, typically, there's not much need to think about the appropriate sentence. For instance, the punishments for misdemeanors are usually pretty straight-forward: A fine, a short jail term and maybe probation for first-time offenders. As for plea deals, the prosecution usually recommends a certain sentence, and many times the sentencing judge goes along with that recommendation.