NCJ Number
222020
Journal
The Howard Journal of Criminal Justice Volume: 47 Issue: 1 Dated: February 2008 Pages: 31-51
Date Published
2008
Length
21 pages
Annotation
This article examines the "CSI Effect" on prosecutors' decision to charge a suspect with a crime.
Abstract
Surveys from 444 American prosecutors revealed that neither forensic science nor substantial evidence shaped the prosecutors' decisions to charge a suspect with a crime, and strongly imply that the CSI Effect shapes prosecutor discretion in unexpected ways, which includes reliance upon 'credible' witnesses (including forensic personnel and victims). Findings also show that judges, juries, and defense lawyers are influenced by prime-time American drama forensic accounts than by the substantial documented evidence of a case. Some suspects are never charged because of faulty prosecutor behavior. The data show that police officers can identify, arrest, secure evidence, and secure the chain of custody, but whether a suspect is charged or not charged is up to the discretionary powers of a prosecutor as opposed to the merits of the case. This causes police officer frustration with the legal system, because so many individuals are freed after an arrest and why police investigative personnel refrain from forensic participation in their cases (Lumb and Wang 2006). This study compared the CSI Effect on prosecutors in the United States and England and Wales. Tables, notes, references