The Role Of Fine As A Criminal Sanction

Abstract

The fine as a criminal sanction is the most common form of sanction for traffic offences in Kenya. Despite this, it has received the least of research compared to Community Service Orders and Imprisonment for traffic offences across the criminologist and penologist arena. Little is known today about the role of the fine as a sanction for traffic offences despite its use. This study set out to examine the role of the fine as a criminal sanction for traffic offences among public transport sector players. The study objectives were; to establish the level of the use of the fine in regulating traffic offences; to establish the extent to which the fine influences behavior change among drivers of public service vehicles and the challenges and opportunities in the administration of the fine as a form of sanction. The study reviewed background information on the fine seeking to understand the history of the fine and its practice across several jurisdictions in the world. Relevant literature on previous studies on the fine was reviewed to reveal the patterns and trends in the use of the fine. Both specific and general deterrence theory and rational choice theory were reviewed and their arguments used to fit the study. The study adopted a descriptive research design. Both snowball and purposive sampling methods to select relevant samples to answer to the research questions. Purposive sampling was used to select key informants for the study while snowball was used to select the primary respondents. The study used both questionnaire and interview schedules to collect primary data. An observational checklist was developed to help in the perusal of court records. Ethical standards were maintained as well as relevant authorizations to allow the researcher to proceed for data collection. Both qualitative and quantitative data were obtained for analysis. The study analyzed the data descriptively using several statistical tools in order to answer to objectives. The findings of the study indicated the level of use of the fine as a sanction on traffic related offences. It also showed that the fine as used faces a number of challenges that hinder its role. The challenges identified included; corruption, inconsistencies and variations with regards to amount of the fine for traffic offences. The study thus made relevant recommendations including to develop an integrated fines management information system and develop a way of making the fine become determinate. The study further suggested other areas for future research.