GRAEME BROWN CRIMINAL SENTENCING AS PRACTICAL WISDOM (HART PUBLISHING, OXFORD, 2017).

Abstract

This book is the outcome of a research project undertaken by the author to investigate the views of Scottish judges and to provide a comprehensive review of recent sentencing scholarship. The book is based on a PhD undertaken at the University of Edinburgh, in the course of which the author interviewed 17 sheriffs and eight judges of the High Court of Justiciary who offered their frank views on sentencing as practised in Scotland. The motivation for interviewing judges was to gain a direct insight into the operation of the law and to present a “human face” to the enterprise of judging and sentencing. As the author notes, while senior members of the Scottish judiciary were extremely supportive of the research, a number of judges who were approached for interviews declined. It was suggested that possible reasons for such reluctance was fear of unfairly adverse criticism, apprehension about the use of research findings by the government and beliefs about judicial independence. However, despite this reluctance amongst some of the judges, the writer was able to assert that the survey was the most extensive of Scottish sentencers undertaken in recent years.