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

Session Submission Type: Complete Thematic Panel

Abstract

This thematic session pulls together several interesting papers examining diverse issues surrounding guilty pleas and criminal convictions. The first paper by Besiki Kutateladze and colleagues examines charging outcomes for misdemeanor marijuana cases in New York City. The second paper by Shawn Bushway examines felony case processing in two New York counties. The third paper by Don Stemen investigates the effects of prosecutor characteristics on charging and sentencing outcomes, and the final paper by Rod Engen looks at the effects of charging outcomes on sentencing decision in a sentencing guidelines state. Together this collection of papers is representative of the most current and sophisticated contemporary research on plea outcomes in state courts.

Sub Unit

• Area IV. Criminal Justice Policy and Practice / 40. Prosecution, Courts and Sentencing

Individual Presentations

• Opening Pandora’s Box: How Does Defendant Race Influence Plea Bargaining Outcomes? - Besiki Kutateladze, CUNY Institute for State and Local Governance; Brian D. Johnson, University of Maryland; Nancy Andiloro, NYC Department of Probation

• Plea Bargaining in Wisconsin: Prosecutor Effects on Charge Reductions and Sentencing Outcomes - Don Stemen, Loyola University, Chicago

• Estimating and Explaining the Value of Charge Bargains in New York - Shawn Bushway, University at Albany, SUNY; Shi Yan, University at Albany, SUNY; Allison Redlich, University at Albany, SUNY

• The Prosecutor’s Power to Punish: What Difference Do Guidelines Make? - Rodney L. Engen, University of Arkansas

Chair

• Brian D. Johnson, University of Maryland