NCJ Number
196617
Journal
Criminology Volume: 40 Issue: 3 Dated: August 2002 Pages: 553-578
Date Published
August 2002
Length
26 pages
Annotation
This article examines the phenomenon of prosecutorial discretion leading to a variety of informal sanctions on offenders.
Abstract
Through the use of a sample of 1,427 domestic violence cases and interviews with prosecutors, the authors tested the idea that arrests not leading to convictions, might lead to punishments in the form of less formal sanctions. Focusing on prosecutorial discretion, this article examines the ways that prosecutors may choose among a series of procedural alternatives in pursuit of case resolution. Following a presentation of literature concerning prosecutorial discretion, court case rejection and dismissal, and prosecutorial decision-making, the authors describe the data set of 1,427 domestic violence cases from the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office, dated from July 1 to November 1, 1999, used in this study. Results of applying multinominal regression to prosecutorial decision-making data and ordinary least-squares regression to sentence length data are presented in a series of figures and tables. Findings from statistical analyses and results of interviews with prosecutors indicate that prosecutors believed that case disposition by means of probation violations was of considerable value, and a majority of court cases were rejected or dismissed in favor of prosecutors using their power to initiate probation violation hearings, often resulting in jail and prison sentences. The authors emphasize that case rejection and dismissal are not synonymous with case termination and that misunderstanding the use of these terms can lead to statistical measurement error. Tables, references