Computer Decides Term Sentences

(Quoted from its source): A Chinese court has been criticised for using a computer program to help decide prison sentences.

The Zichuan District People's Court has reportedly used the software in more than 1,500 criminal cases.

The program, created by a Beijing-based company, covers about 100 different crimes including robbery, rape, murder and crimes against the state.

The judge enters details of a case and the system produces a sentence, reports the South China Morning Post.

The software's developer, Qin Ye, was quoted as saying: "The software is aimed at ensuring standardised decisions on prison terms.

"Our programs set standard terms for any subtle distinctions in different cases of the same crime."

The court's Chief Judge, Wang Hongmei, said: "The software can avoid abuse of discretionary power of judges as a result of corruption or insufficient training."

But the move has been criticised by a section of the Chinese media as a farce that highlighted the "laziness of the court".

Source: Ananova

Note: Furby is not what they really use.