What are the goals of the Depravity Standard research effort?
The Depravity Standard research is an international effort that aims to scientifically standardize the definition of legal terms such as “heinous,” “atrocious,” “evil,” and “depraved,” which are currently used in the justice system to influence the severity of sentences. This research will establish a consistent and fair distinction for the worst of crimes—incorporating input from the public, who will become tomorrow’s jurors. Ultimately, the research will develop an operational Depravity Standard, which will assist judges and juries at the sentencing phase of trials. This objective, evidence-based instrument will measure the specific intents, actions, victimology, and attitudes of a crime—the “what” of a crime, as opposed to the “who” or the “why”—to distinguish the aspects of a crime’s fact pattern as reflective of depravity, and thus warranting a more severe sentence.
