The Dominican Republic Sentencing Commission Researches Norms and Guidelines

Dominican Republic Sentencing Commission launched its work with a technical exchange visit to Miami and Washington, DC. ?Members explored U.S. federal sentencing guidelines as a model to address the lack of transparency and public trust, significant backlogs, and disparities in sentencing within the Dominican justice system. The commission includes judges (including the Supreme Court), prosecutors, public defenders, private attorneys, law professors, and the Director of the National Judiciary School. ?

In the Southern District of Florida (SDFL), commission members observed federal sentencing and plea hearings, and they engaged with the U.S. Attorney of SDFL and the U.S. Probation Office to learn about the collaboration between prosecutors, defense attorneys, and probation officers in achieving fair and efficient sentencing outcomes. ?In Washington, DC, the delegation met with the U.S. Sentencing Commission to discuss the development and application of guidelines.??

This is one of several activities of this important and innovative initiative that seeks to generate the first Sentencing Guides in Latin American with the support of INL and PADF′s Dominican Republic′s Counter Organized Crime and Anticorruption Project.