Critically evaluate the accuracy of this statement “Punishment should be proportionate to the seriousness of the offense. The basic principle of desert in punishing convicted persons is that the severity of the punishment should be proportional to the seriousness of the offender's criminal behavior. The principle of proportionate deserts focuses on the seriousness of past conduct, not the possibility of impending conduct. This retrospective focus distinguishes desert from the crime control goals of deterrence, incapacitation, and therapy. The test for judging whether a sanction is deserved is whether it honestly reflects the seriousness of the criminal conduct for which the offender was convicted, rather than its success in preventing imminent crimes by the defendant or other offenders potential. The rationale for this principle can be stated as follows. Punishment involves blame; it is a defining feature of punishment that is not only unpleasant (as are many other types of state intervention), but also characterizes the person punished as an offender who is censured or reprimanded for his criminal act. The severity of the punishment leads to the amount of reproach: the more severe the punishment, the stronger the implicit censure. The amount of the penalty must therefore be proportionate, for reasons of justice, to the degree of culpability of the criminal conduct of the offender. The principle of proportionate deserts addresses the issue of sentencing, that is, the amount of punishment for convicted offenders. This question of distribution is distinct from the question of the general justification of punishment, namely why the legal organization of punishment should exist. Arguing that the commensu...... middle of paper ...... system, for example, it is about the type of crime for which the offender is convicted and certain "enhancements" based on the violence or loss of property during the commission of the current crime and on previous criminal record. Once the determining factors have been identified, we can examine whether and to what extent they are related to the seriousness of the criminal behavior (or the extent and severity of the person's criminal record). To the extent that these factors are unrelated, people with the same criminal offense (and criminal history) may receive unequal sentences. Once this is done, the same study can be carried out on the hindering and justifying factors which justify a departure from the normally recommended sentence. The more these factors are linked to desert, the more they help ensure that those whose conduct is equally responsible will receive equal sanctions..