Sentencing Decisions For Emerging Adult Offenders: Age Differences in Non-Incarcerated Sanctions in Pennsylvania

Emerging adult offenders ages 18 to 25 are legally adults while maintaining neurodevelopmental similarities to adolescents, creating a challenge for the court as to whether to sentence them as adults or juveniles. Using Pennsylvania Commission on Sentencing data from 2015 to 2019, this study examines whether non-incarcerated sanctions differ across emerging-adult groups and older adults, and whether county context shapes these decisions. Multilevel models show that emerging adult offenders tend to receive more lenient sanctions than older offenders, and individuals ages 18 to 21 are more likely than those ages 22 to 25 to receive community-based sanctions. County political orientation and urbanization are associated with non-incarcerated sentences, but not with probation-versus-RIP sanctions. Results highlight differential sanctions for emerging adult offenders and the role of contextual factors in sentencing.