At a court hearing last week Tanya and her boyfriend Roberto each pled guilty for possession with intent to sell 6 bags of heroin to an undercover police officer. Each could receive a possible maximum prison sentence of 4 ½ to 9 years’ imprisonment. Both Tanya and Roberto have been detainees in Rikers Island since September 2018 before the new bail reform laws. Presentence Investigation reports (PSIs) were completed for each and the NYC Department of Probation interviewer discloses the following:
Tanya is a 26-year-old mother with 2 children, ages 6 and 9. Documentation confirms her long history of substance abuse including a current addiction to heroin. Her mother currently has custody of the children but Tanya visits them regularly and tries hard to stay in the children’s’ lives. This is her first conviction for drug sales, although she has several misdemeanor convictions for drug possession and petty larceny, as well as 1 felony conviction for grand larceny in 2016 where she received probation. She’s a high school graduate with over four years working in various office and restaurant jobs before her drug habit took control six years ago. She’s currently receiving public assistance and hasn’t worked since 2017. Court records confirm that she had been living with Roberto at the time of the arrest, and involved in 2 documented episodes of domestic violence where she was the victim. She says that she reluctantly agreed to act as Roberto’s lookout, steering prospective drug customers his way to earn much needed money to maintain her habit. The presentence probation officer interviewing Tanya described her as bright, likes to cook, and has even expressed interest in skilled labor connected with construction. She wants to be drug free and actually completed a treatment program with New Directions while on probation. Clean for a year, her depression over her relationship with Roberto caused her to relapse, also resulting in ACS transferring custody of her kids to her mother.
Roberto is a 29-year-old parolee with 2 prior felony convictions for drug sales and burglary. He’s the father of Tanya’s 2 children and has been described as a caring but largely absentee father prior to his incarceration in 2017. He served 1½ years of his 1 ½ to 3 year sentence for grand larceny and has been on parole for 8 months before his arrest with Tanya. He went as far as the 11th grade in school before dropping out to earn money for his family through factory work and off-the-books trucking jobs. Once he came home in September 2018 his successes in finding entry level work were sporadic at best. As the holidays approached he went back to selling drugs before this most recent arrest. His last several drug screenings at parole have generally come back negative. Roberto’s parole officer states that his client was bright and seemed serious about doing better with his life but said his living arrangements were extremely unstable. He had been sharing a small apartment with Tanya but the parole officer removed him after learning of the most recent domestic violence incident. He has roughly a year left on parole. Roberto was living in a Salvation Army shelter in the Bronx at the time of his last arrest.
ASSIGNMENT: You’re the judge’s law clerk who, after reviewing the Department of Probation PSIs and researching various resources, are expected to write a memo for the judge making a recommendation of the type of sentence the judge will impose. Your sentencing memo will answer the questions listed below:
1. Give specific details of the exact form of punishment you are recommending for Tanya.
2. Give specific details of the exact form of punishment you are recommending for Roberto.
3. State whether the sentence for Tanya is one of probation; an intermediate sanction; indeterminate imprisonment; or determinate imprisonment.
4. State whether the sentence for Roberto is one of probation; an intermediate sanction; indeterminate imprisonment; or determinate imprisonment
5. Select at least 2 resources or services from 2 of the web links below that you feel will can assist in the disposition of your recommended sentence. Be sure to name the specific organization, agency or institution in your answer.
6. Should Tanya have been released on bail? Why or why not?
7. Should Roberto have been released on bail? Why or why not?

RESOURCE WEB LINKS
1. http://www.doe.org/
2. http://providencehouse.org/
3. http://www.wpaonline.org/
4. http://www.osborneny.org/
5. https://doccs.ny.gov/programs
6. https://hourchildren.org/
7. http://www.new-nyc.org/
8. https://doccs.ny.gov/aggression-replacement-training-art-program
9. http://fortunesociety.org/
10. http://www.daytop.org/
11. https://www1.nyc.gov/site/cchr/law/fair-chance-law.pageNYC Commission on Human Rights
12. https://www.courtinnovation.org/sites/default/files/media/document/2019/Bail_Reform_NY_full_0.pdf Bail Reform Law by the Office of Court Innovation