Kutak Rock attorney Lisa Saccomano authored an article, “Defining the Proper Role of ‘Offender Characteristics’ in Sentencing Decisions: A Critical Race Theory Perspective,” published in the Spring 2019 edition of Georgetown Law’s American Criminal Law Review, the nation’s premier journal of criminal law.

The article covers the case of Brock Turner, a young white college athlete from Stanford who was convicted of sexual assault but spared the mandatory term of imprisonment. The judge in the case was accused of racial and gender bias and a campaign was launched to remove him from the bench. However, Ms. Saccomano argues this case was hardly an isolated incident of apparent privilege in criminal justice. She argues that the problem resides primarily in the tradition of the law, not the fairmindedness of the judge and that the way in which courts weigh offender characteristic factors in sentencing is unfair and unjust.

To read the article, please click on the file below.

Ms. Saccomano is a seasoned trial attorney and former deputy district attorney. Her insight into the thought processes of law enforcement and other government entities provides her clients with an edge when it comes to negotiating favorable outcomes in criminal, administrative, and regulatory proceedings.

Defining the Proper Role of "Offender Characteristics" in Sentencing Decisions: A Critical Race Theory Perspective