Wisconsin high court upholds judge’s use of “scoring system”

Driver in shooting wanted re-sentencing based on results

Wisconsin’s highest court upheld a scoring system that judges can use to set a prison sentence.

Wednesday’s ruling on COMPAS report results from a La Crosse court case, in which Eric Loomis challenged the use of that formula because it takes a defendant’s gender into account.

Loomis was arrested three years ago for driving the car used in a drive-by shooting that put holes in the wall of a north-side house. He was sentenced to a six-year prison term on reduced charges in the case.  

Loomis wanted to be re-sentenced, claiming that the COMPAS system unfairly considers a defendant’s sex in rating the chances that a person could re-offend.

Scott Horne was the presiding judge in the Loomis case, and he says COMPAS is a valuable tool to help judges figure out the future risk that a criminal will re-offend.

“The results are better than if the judge simply relies on gut instinct based on what the judge knows about the offender from the facts of the crime and the history,” Horne said.

Horne has said that the COMPAS report did not influence the length of sentence he gave to Loomis.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruling concluded that COMPAS isn’t perfect but is still a valuable tool for sentencing.

“If we utilized an assessment of the offenders history and factors relating to the crime, without considering the risk evaluatoins, the results will not be as good,” Horne said.

Legal experts around the country have awaited the ruling in the Loomis case. Some have been critical of the secrecy used by the company that developed its “scoring system.”