Opening Pandora’s Box: How Does Defendant Race Influence Plea Bargaining Outcomes?

• In Event: Understanding Guilty Pleas: New and Innovative Research on Guilty Pleas in State Courts

Abstract

Relying on implicit bias theory and using unique data on misdemeanor marijuana cases, this study examines the impact of defendants’ race on prosecutors' decisions to make (a) plea offers for a lesser charge, and (b) sentence offers for non-custodial punishments. Preliminary findings indicated that black defendants were less likely to receive reduced charge offers, and both black and Latino defendants were more likely to receive custodial sentence offers. However, these disparities were largely explained by legal factors, evidence, arrest circumstances, and court actor characteristics, though black defendants were still more likely to receive custodial sentence offers after including these controls. No differences were found between white and Asian defendants. Implications for research and prosecutorial practices are discussed.

Authors

• Besiki Kutateladze, CUNY Institute for State and Local Governance

• Brian D. Johnson, University of Maryland

• Nancy Andiloro, NYC Department of Probation