A global comparison of long prison sentences

Abstract

While it is widely known that American criminal justice policies are generally more punitive than those of peer industrialized nations, there is limited comparative research on the prevalence of long sentences (i.e., 10 or more years) across different countries. This study fills this gap by drawing on publicly available sentencing data from various U.S. states and countries across the globe. On average, U.S. prisoners convicted of homicide are sentenced to longer terms in prison compared to their counterparts in other countries. Despite having lower homicide rates, U.S. states generally incarcerate more people, and for longer periods of time, when compared with many Latin American countries. The average sentence length imposed in the U.S. is more aligned with the criminal justice policies of the Global South than with those of peer industrialized nations. Our analyses also draw attention to the importance of considering homicide rates in comparative analyses of punitiveness. We highlight the unique features of the U.S. system that may contribute to more punitive sentencing practices, such as the decentralized structure of the political and criminal legal systems.