Allocution (Pre Sentence Report)
After a determination of guilt or the defendant
pleas guilty, a pre-sentence report is ordered by the
court. A pre-sentence report is required on all
indictable cases, except death penalty cases See
State v. Buglione, 233 N.J. Super, 110, 113
(App. Div., certif.den. 117 N.J. 636 (1989). See
also Pressler, Court Rules, and Comment 3 to
R. 3:21-2(a). Where a functional equivalent of a
full PSI is present in the file, the court is allowed,
on 3rd and 4th degree victimless offenses, to
sentence the defendant at the time of the plea when
the sentencing can be expedited without
jeopardizing fairness. This is known as
“simultaneous sentencing.” Under the usual
process, after the pre-sentence report is prepared, a
sentencing hearing is held. This is known as the
“allocution hearing.” At this hearing, both sides
make recommendations to the court on what the
sentence should be. The defendant also is allowed
to make a personal plea to the court regarding
sentence. Once the prosecution and defense have
made their recommendations, the judge renders
his/her sentence and states the reasons for the
sentence on the record.
