NCJ Number
238810
Journal
Journal of Criminal Justice Volume: 40 Issue: 2 Dated: March/April 2012 Pages: 103-116
Date Published
April 2012
Length
14 pages
Annotation
This study examined the use of dismissals as major case dispositions and the effect that this has on public safety and crime prevention in U.S. criminal courts.
Abstract
The study found several factors that contributed to a defendant's case being dismissed: defendant's with prior incarcerations were more likely to have their cases dismissed, while drug involved defendants were less likely to have their cases dismissed; defendants who were currently employed or who had child support obligations were also more likely to have their cases dismissed; and while education level played a significant role on the likelihood for dismissal, age and gender had no significant impact on case disposition outcomes. Regarding the effect that case dismissal would have on a defendant's risk for subsequent offending, the study found that dismissed defendants were almost four times more likely to be rearrested following disposition of their case than their non-dismissed counterparts. This study examined the use of dismissals as major case dispositions and its effect on public safety and crime prevention efforts. Data for the study were obtained from predictive and causal analyses of a sample of 800 felony and misdemeanor cases of criminal defendants in Philadelphia courts during the period March - May 2005. The analyses tested two hypotheses: whether certain risk factors would affect the likelihood of a defendant's case being dismissed, and whether dismissals increased the likelihood of subsequent reoffending on the part of the defendant. The study's findings indicate that certain risk attributes of defendants contribute to the potential for case dismissal, and that dismissal in itself increases the likelihood of subsequent offending. Study limitations are discussed. Tables, figures, appendix, notes, and references