Understanding the drops: Variation in screening and dismissal practices across prosecutor’s offices

• In Event: Prosecutorial Performance Indicators: Advancements in data and research

Abstract

When prosecutors eliminate under-evidenced and unjust cases at initial screening rather than after it, they help to minimize both unnecessary criminal justice expenditures and the burden on defendants whose cases are not appropriate for prosecution. However, the extent to which this ideal is reflected in prosecutorial practice is unclear. The purpose of this study is to illustrate variation in prosecutorial screening and post-screening dismissal practices and to consider how these practices shape disparities in case outcomes. Using aggregate data collected from publicly available prosecutorial data dashboards and case-level data extracted from prosecutors’ offices case management systems, we find that offices vary substantially in the total proportion of cases that are dropped at screening or dismissed, and the relative proportion of cases dropped at screening versus dismissed. Racial differences in case outcomes are observable, and the magnitude and loci of disparity are dependent on the jurisdiction and screening process being examined.

Authors

• R.R. Dunlea, University of Massachusetts Lowell

• Lin Liu, Florida International University