NCJ Number
78546
Date Published
1981
Length
73 pages
Annotation
This paper is a summary report of a national evaluation of the Career Criminal Program (CCP), an LEAA-funded effort which provides resources to local prosecutors' offices to identify and rigorously prosecute serious, repeat offenders.
Abstract
Orleans Parish, La., San Diego County, Calif., Franklin County, Ohio, and Kalamazoo, Mich., sites were evaluated according to routine processing, definitions, targeted prosecution, impact on criminal justice processing, and crime impact. Beyond general support for targeting career criminals, there was considerable diversity among the four jurisdictions in defining their career criminal population. The offices focused solely either on past repeaters (New Orleans, Franklin County), or on the most 'serious' portion of their criminal defendant population (Kalamazoo, San Diego). Few changes in disposition mode and type (conviction, plea, trial, and dismissal rates) of career criminal defendants were associated with the CCP. Although the strength and length of career criminal convictions were increased, no increases in incapacitation rates were observed in any of the four sites. In fact, three of the four sites were incapacitating career criminals at a high (90 percent) rate before the program. Contrary to expectations, more serious cases are not being neglected by the criminal justice system. Given the highly structured environment in which the prosecutor operates, it is understandable that the majority of the CCP activities have involved changes in the internal operations of the prosecutor's office. In order to impact crime rates, a CCP requires additional Federal funding; cooperation by the police, the judiciary, and corrections; some mechanism to tie minimum sentences to the charges of conviction; and cooperation with parole boards, which can release career criminals as fast or faster than prosecutors can process them. Tabular data are provided. (Author abstract modified)