Legal Representation and Case Outcomes: Evidence from Philadelphia

• In Event: The Impact of Bond Type and Other Factors on Pretrial Outcomes

Abstract

This study examines how the type of indigent legal representation—public defender versus court-appointed counsel—affects the likelihood of conviction, entering a guilty plea, and receiving a carceral sentence. By analyzing quantitative data on court dockets from the Philadelphia District Attorney's Office Case Management System (DAOCMS), I leverage the quasi-random assignment of counsel among pairs of co-defendants within the same court case. OLS regression analyses reveal that, overall, case outcomes are similar between defendants represented by public defenders and those with court-appointed attorneys. However, for defendants with prior criminal histories, public defender representation is associated with a lower likelihood of conviction, though it does not appear to impact the probability of a guilty plea or a carceral sentence. These preliminary findings illustrate how variations in indigent legal representation can influence judicial outcomes, especially for those with prior criminal records. While every defendant has the right to legal representation, ensuring adequate quality of counsel is essential to reduce disparities throughout the judicial process.

Author

• Flavia Mandatori, University of Pennsylvania