Browsing by Author "Dart, Chinique Elizabeth"

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    The use of pre-sentence reports in the deterrence of drug-related gang activity in South Africa
    (University of the Western Cape, 2025) Dart, Chinique Elizabeth
    There are several outside influences that impact the criminal conduct of an offender. Pre-sentence reports must be used where the offender is to be properly and effectively rehabilitated, this is a key consideration. The only way to successfully implement rehabilitative measures is to examine all the circumstances that led to the crime. This paper is centred on the judiciary’s potential to take action and compel the use of pre- sentence reports not only as a deterrent to gang activity but also as a method of upholding the principles of sentencing. It is challenging to disregard the potential impact pre-sentence reports may have on the offender and the community they are endangering. There will be a further discussion as to what the legal system and specifically the judiciary can do, to stop gang violence and the ingrained “an eye for an eye” maxim. Psychological and societal factors influence the urge for survival in South African gang activity. The responsibility of the judiciary to reduce the offenders’ capacity and need for using violence to establish dominance and power over their communities, will be explored. By denying the significance and influence of pre-sentence reports, one is merely supporting the idea that prisons are training grounds for criminals. A pre-sentence report’s possible preventative authority will be discussed. This issue extends beyond the convicts’ rehabilitation since it also involves the need for retribution for those who suffer in gang-infested regions. The question to be answered is whether the pre-sentence reports are being used effectively.