Prosecutorial Discretion and Disparities in Hot Car Death Cases

• In Event: 40461 - Section on Sociology of Law Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (60 minute): Table 2: Judge and Prosecutorial Decision Making

Abstract

Nearly 40 children per year die in hot cars in the U.S. In the aftermath of a “hot car death,” police make decisions about arrests, and prosecutors determine what type of punishment, if any, a parent should face. Because the circumstances of these deaths are remarkably similar, these cases offer a unique opportunity to highlight the interplay of gender and race in socio-legal responses. While some studies have examined how social characteristics of defendants influence prosecution, in this study, we analyze the effects that prosecutors’ own traits have on charging decisions and conviction outcomes in hot car death cases. In our analyses of nearly 300 such cases between 1997 and 2021, we find that women prosecutors pursue hot car deaths more harshly than men prosecutors, but found no differences by race. This research illuminates how intersecting social factors impact the carriage of justice and inequalities in the criminal justice system.

Authors

• Elizabeth Borland, The College of New Jersey

• Mary Nell Trautner, University at Buffalo, SUNY

• Jordan Ekstrom, Indiana University-Bloomington

• Cameron James Keating, Indiana University-Bloomington

• Chloe Elizabeth Burke, The College of New Jersey

• Amber Rollins, Kids and Car Safety

• Janette Fennell, Kids and Car Safety