The study explores the assignment of probation sentencing packages using a data matching process for 3,031 adult males convicted of a felony in two urban counties. Distinct classes of combinations of probation conditions are identified using latent class analysis, and the influence of race and ethnicity on selection into probation and assignment to these classes is investigated while controlling for other relevant factors. Results indicate legally relevant factors account for much of the racial and ethnic disparity in the initial in/out decision, but not in the assignment of probation conditions. Black probationers are more likely to be assigned to a wider range of combinations of probation conditions, more likely to be assigned to combinations that impose specific restrictions, and more likely to be assigned to classes with longer jail sentences. Findings are discussed as they relate to theoretical perspectives on judicial decision making, discretion in sentencing, and court contexts.

issue-4/issuetoc. This article is dedicated to the memory of our colleague and collaborator, Anat Kimchi, who tragically died after the manuscript was accepted for publication. Her contributions to the article were invaluable and she will be sorely missed by many.

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Sentencing guidelines are formal sentencing recommendations that provide benchmarks for appropriate punishments to judges at sentencing. They often consist of two-dimensional grids that rank the seriousness of the current offense along one axis and the prior offending history of the offender on the other. Cells within the grid provide specific ranges of punishments that are presumed to be appropriate in typical cases involving typical offenders. Many sentencing guidelines are established and monitored by a specialized administrative body known as a sentencing commission. Since the early 1980s, sentencing guidelines have been implemented in numerous US states and in the federal justice system with the express goals of reducing unwarranted disparity and increasing consistency, uniformity, and transparency in punishment.