Suspended Sentences in Israel

Abstract

A study to evaluate the presumable effectiveness of suspended sentence of imprisonment is described by the authors, who hypothesize that (1) suspended imprisonment is more effective with the first offender than with the recidivist, (2) its effectiveness depends more strongly on the offender's previous criminal history than on any other variable, (3) its effectiveness decreases for the "professional" offender, but (4) increases for offenders whose motive is lucrative. The authors compare a research group of offenders who had received suspended sentences with a control group of offenders who had received other sentences. Cross- tabulation of such factors as age, place of birth, sex, occupation, previous criminal history, and general success rate revealed that age and previous offense were the variables most significant in determining success rates. Those in the highest age group who had no previous convictions tended to be the "best risks" for suspended sentence while those in the lowest age group with more than four previous offenses tended to be the "worst risks." Since the general success rates of both the research and control groups did not differ significantly, the authors conclude that an offender's success or failure is related more to the variables of age, personality, and previous criminal history than to the type and severity of sentence he receives.