Indeterminate sentence

An uncertain or indefinite sentence for crime.

A form of sentence to imprisonment upon conviction of crime, now authorized by stafute in several states, which, instead of fixing rigidly the duration of the imprisonment, declares that it shall be for a period "not less than" so many years "nor more than" so many years, or not less than the minimum period prescribed by statute as the punishment for the particular offense nor more than the maximum period, the exact length of the term being afterwards fixed, within the limits assigned by the court or the statute, by an executive authority, (the governor, board of pardons, etc.,) on consideration of the previous record of the convict, his behavior while in prison or While out on parole, the apparent prospect of reformation, and other such considerations.

Defined under Sentence in Black's Law Dictionary.