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Saturday Schedule
Program
Annual
Meeting
Home
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Saturday, January 4, 2003
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10:30 a.m.-12:15 p.m.
Section on Criminal Justice
- Andrew Eric Taslitz, Howard University, Chair and Program Co-Chair
- Deborah W. Denno, Fordham University, Program Co-Chair
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Cotillion South
Marriott Wardman Park Hotel
Mezzanine Level |
Does the Model Penal Code Need to Be Revised?
Moderator:
Andrew Eric Taslitz, Howard University
Speakers: - Deborah W. Denno, Fordham University
- R. Kent Greenawalt, Columbia University
- Gerard E. Lynch, Columbia University
- Paul H. Robinson, University of Pennsylvania
- Kenneth W. Simons, Boston University
The publication of the first draft of the Model Penal Code (MPC) by the American Law Institute (ALI) in 1962 was a signal event in the development of American criminal law. Numerous states have seen fit to base some or most of their criminal codes on the MPC or have been inspired in criminal law legislation by the underlying MPC concepts. In the close to a half-century since the MPC was first promulgated, however, there have been enormous changes in the criminal justice system, in the social norms underlying that system, and in scholarly conceptualizations of the structure of criminal law and of the justifications for punishment. Societal changes have included the growth of Second Wave feminism and of an accompanying consciousness about the plight of rape victims and abused women; the expansion of white collar criminal offences; the federalization of criminal law; and the creation of a host of new crimes, including hate crimes, stalking, identity theft, and terrorism-related offenses. The War on Drugs, among other factors, has enormously expanded the size of the criminal justice system and the burdens placed upon it, having the (perhaps unintended) consequence of disproportionately imprisoning racial minorities. Meanwhile, the nation has moved toward a less-individualized, guidelines approach to sentencing, just as many criminal law theorists have moved away from traditional versions of utilitarian and retributive justifications for punishments.
Do these and other social, political, and theoretical developments justify revisiting the MPC in its entirety to determine whether radically to revise it, merely expand it, instead tinker with it, or simply to leave well enough alone? ALI has already begun reviewing the MPC's sentencing provisions, but this panel will explore whether a broader inquiry is necessary. Panelists will address this broad question, different panelists arguing for different positions on the radical revision/do nothing continuum. Along the way, the panelists will touch on gun control legislation, child pornography, RICO, new conceptualizations of mens rea, practical criminal justice politics, and a host of specific issues confronting the system today. The panel will thus simultaneously be a whirlwind tour and critique of criminal law developments during the past 50 years, an examination of the tension between theory and practical policy implementation, and a close analysis of the MPC that should aid in teaching students to master it and policymakers to judge its current wisdom.
Business Meeting at Program Conclusion
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