Page 23 - Issue 34

ELITE Vol.1, issue 34, August 2021
Vol.1, issue 34, August 2021

The handsome killer and the bias in

the legal system

Mariam Elsafty, second year, political science
Weeks ago, we have noticed the attractive young But a concern of mine is that I don’t want to over-emphasize
man, Cameron Herrin, who was sentenced to prison the attractiveness bias. Judges and jurors are affected by all
for 24 years, and I kept wondering why do some kinds of cognitive distortions, such as emotive evidence, time
people want to lessen the amount of years of of day, remorse of the defendant, socioeconomic status, race,
punishment saying that he was too young to spend gender, anchoring effect, and the contrast bias. Sometimes
his blooming years at prison, in contrast to that, the mock jurors generally sentenced unattractive criminals
side which sees he actually deserved the punishment significantly higher than attractive criminals. However, as
or even more, were so frustrated blaming Cameron jurors do not determine sentencing in real court cases, these
saying that he caused two innocent people to lose results are not directly applicable. Generally, attractive
their lives. And let me say that this case has caused people are perceived as more intelligent, more socially
my mind to wonder; why do those people, who are skilled, more appealing personalities, more moral, more
mostly teenage girls, defend a killer? I overthought altruistic, more likely to succeed, more hirable as managers,
the idea until I decided to ask google that gave me a and more competent. Attractive people tend to have better
shocking answer! The answer was, and in many physical health, better mental health, earn more money,
cases, the level of physical attractiveness of the obtain higher career positions, chosen for jobs more often,
offender could be a measure upon which people in promoted more often, receive better job evaluations, and
the form of society and judges in the form of the chosen as business partners more often, than unattractive
legal system place their judgments and punishment people. I believe that the attractiveness bias is rarely
on. Casually saying, if we have a very attractive conscious.
serial killer who was sentenced to death, some . I do not think people are consciously disfavoring unattractive
people of a society would get sad for him regardless people. I also do not place moral blame on the typical person
his awful history of getting innocents to lose their for their unconscious bias. We have some scientific studies that
lives. Let me clarify that those people didn’t show us the reason behind this bias. Starting by THE
choose to have empathy for the bad guy, but it’s PENNSYLVANIAN STUDY. In Pennsylvanian and
something subconscious. Even judges could change Philadelphian courts, the researcher’s gathered data on 67
the degree of punishment, subconsciously, from defendants. The defendants were a mix of black, Hispanic, and
person to another only depending on how attractive white and there were 15 real judges in total. On average (mean),
or unattractive he is. Statistically, they fined criminals of low attractiveness were sentenced to 4.10 years in
unattractive criminals 304.88% higher than prison and criminals of high attractiveness were sentenced to
attractive criminals. Surprising I know! 1.87 years in prison. This equals a 119.25% increase.

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