Court Delay in Minnesota District Courts - A Preliminary Report of the Plea Negotiation Study

• NCJ Number: 83872
• Author(s): C Thomssen; P J Falkowski
• Date Published: 1977
• Length: 65 pages
• Corporate Author: Minnesota Criminal Justice Program
• Sale Source: National Institute of Justice/
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This study focuses on court delay in Minnesota through examination of the practice of plea negotiations utilizing data collected from district courts and county attorney files concerning felony cases filed in 1975.

Abstract

In 1975, there were 7,453 criminal dispositions in Minnesota's district courts. A sampling consisting of 1,342 cases was selected, representing approximately one-sixth of all criminal dispositions. A primary consideration in the selection of cases was the study's focus on the Minnesota Rules of Criminal Procedure and their effect on disposition. In order to measure the adjudication process before and after the rules became effective, approximately 50 percent of the sample consisted of cases handled before rules implementation and 50 percent after. Basically, the rules established time limits within which court appearance should occur. Data analysis revealed that at least 75 percent of the sampled cases were in compliance with the rules. Significant differences in case processing time existed for cases processed after the rules became effective. After implementation, more cases reached disposition more quickly, and the amount of variation was significantly less than in prerules cases. The district courts in Minnesota are not plagued with an inordinate amount of court delay at the felony level; 75 percent of the sampled cases reached disposition within 60 court days of arrest. The Rules of Criminal Procedure were effective in reducing the amount of court processing time. Eleven tables, 5 graphs, and 34 footnotes are included; 11 additional tables are appended.