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Indeterminate Sentencing In Prisons

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In the 1970’s most states based the time someone spent in prison using indeterminate sentencing. This meant that someone could be sentenced to prison without any definite time being set when sentencing. After a while states started to have fixed prison terms or determinate sentencing. Because of this, a vast amount of people were only spending a couple of years in prison for violent crimes and being released for good behavior. To combat this mandatory minimum sentence emerged. This required that prisoner to spend a specific amount of time in prison. The Truth in Sentencing Act of 1984 became more concrete and a universal law of the country. Prisoners serve 80%-90% of their time before they are eligible for parole. Truth-in-sentencing laws

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