NCJ Number
82930
Journal
Law and Society Review Volume: 13 Issue: 2 Dated: (Winter 1979) Pages: 349-366
Date Published
1979
Length
18 pages
Annotation
A field experiment in Dade County, Fla., evaluated the use of a pretrial settlement conference as a means of restructuring plea negotiations.
Abstract
The experiment compared postarraignment cases where conferences were available with those where they were not. Three judges agreed to use the conference in a random selection of those cases that survived arraignment. Three other judges who did not use the conference allowed their cases to be analyzed. The design included three treatment conditions: pretreatment, test, and control for the test judges and pretreatment and control for the comparison judges. Information was collected from court records about the nature of the offense, the timing of the process, and the method and type of disposition for each defendant in the sample. The discussion at each conference was recorded, and structured 20-minute interviews were conducted with victim, defendant, and police in test and control cases, after the cases were closed. Among respondents located, the study interviewed 54 percent of the defendants, 78 percent of the victims, and 63 percent of the police. Results indicate that the conferences were brief but generally reached at least an outline of a settlement. They usually included at least one lay party although lay attendance rates were quite low. The change in structure reduced the case processing time by lowering the information and decisionmaking costs to the judges and attorneys. No significant changes were observed in the settlement rate or in the imposition of criminal sanctions. There was some evidence that police and victims who attended the sessions obtained more information and developed more positive attitudes about the way their cases were handled. Footnotes, tables, and 14 references are included. (Author abstract modified)