NCJ Number
85148
Date Published
1980
Length
287 pages
Annotation
This dissertation argues that discrimination in the criminal justice system occurs at two levels: direct discrimination at the individual level when judges unequally sentence defendants of different groups; structural discrimination at the systemic level when defendants of particular groups differentially encounter organizational procedures influencing the outcomes of their cases.
Abstract
It detected direct discrimination, finding that defendants' characteristics influenced the severity of the sentence when prior record and offense seriousness were held constant. The defendant characteristics used were gender, age, ethnicity, and economic status. Structural discrimination occurred when it was demonstrated that an organizational procedure influenced the severity of the sentence and the defendant's characteristics directly influenced the organizational procedure. The organizational procedures analyzed were the assignment of legal representation, the recognizance bail decision, the defendant's ability to make bail, and the defendant's decision either to stand trial or to plead guilty. Blacks and males were found to receive more serious sentences in comparison to whites and females. Defendants represented by a public defender were more likely to be sentenced to prison than were those with a privately retained lawyer. Defendants who either were released on recognizance or made bail were sentenced more severely than those detained in protective custody. Defendants who stood trial and lost were sentenced more severely than those who pleaded guilty. Structural discrimination results because every defendant does not have equal access to the organizational procedures which precipitate more severe sentences, particularly for the economically disadvantaged and ethnic minorities. Footnotes, tabular data, and over 60 references are given. The appendix contains a review of sentencing literature.