U.S. Department of Justice
Office of Justice Programs
Bureau of Justice Statistics

State Court Processing Statistics

Felony Defendants in Large Urban Counties, 2000


December 2003, NCJ 202021


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Felony Defendants in Large Urban Counties, 2000

Arrest charges

Demographic characteristics

Criminal history

Pretrial release and detention

Adjudication

Sentencing

Arrest charges

Gerard Rainville
and Brian A. Reaves, Ph.D.
BJS Statisticians

Contents

Lawrence A. Greenfeld
Director

Gerard Rainville and Brian Reaves, BJS statisticians, prepared 
this report.  Thomas Cohen provided statistical review. Tina 
Dorsey and Tom Hester edited the report. Jayne Robinson produced 
the final submission for printing.

The data were collected and processed by the Pretrial Services 
Resource Center under the supervision of Jolanta Juszkiewicz. 
Carma Hogue of the Economic Statistical Methods and Procedures
Division, U.S. Census Bureau, assisted with sample design.

Data presented in this report may be obtained from the National 
Archive of Criminal Justice Data at the University of Michigan,
1-800-999-0960. The report and data are available on the Internet 
at: http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs

Highlights                              

State Court Processing Statistics              

Arrest charges                          

Demographic characteristics             

Criminal history                        

Criminal justice status at time of arrest
                                        
Prior arrests                           
Prior convictions                                   
                                        
Pretrial release and detention                                                 
                             
Rates of release and detention            
Bail amounts                            
Time from arrest to release             
Criminal history and probability of release              
Conduct of released defendants            
                                        
Adjudication                            
                                        
Time from arrest to adjudication               
Adjudication outcome                    
Case processing statistics              

Sentencing

Time from conviction to sentencing             
Type and length of sentence                         
Prior record and felony sentencing            

Methodology                             

Appendix                                

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Highlights

State Court Processing Statistics 

Every 2 years, as part of its State Court Processing Statistics 
(SCPS) program, the Bureau of Justice Statistics tracks a sample 
of felony cases filed during the month of May in 40 of the 
Nation's 75 largest counties. The most recent SCPS study analyzed
cases filed during May 2000.

Trends in processing of felony defendants,
1990-2000

Since 1990 the proportion of defendants charged with a violent 
offense has remained at about a fourth. From 1992 to 2000, the 
proportion of drug defendants increased from 30% to 37%. During 
this period, the percentage of defendants charged with a
property crime decreased from 35% to 30%. The proportion of 
defendants charged with a public-order offense has remained 
under 1 in 10.

In 2000 the percentage of defendants age 40 or older was 21%, 
about twice the 10% found in the 1990 study. During the same 
time, the percentage of defendants under age 25 decreased from 
41% to 34%.

The percentage of female defendants has increased from 14% in 1990 
to 19% in 2000. In 2000, non-Hispanic blacks accounted for 45% of
defendants, the same as in 1998, but a slightly smaller percentage 
than in prior years. Compared to 1998, the percentage of non-
Hispanic whites increased slightly to 30%, while the percentage of
Hispanic or Latino defendants decreased slightly to 23%.

Since 1990 approximately 3 in 8 defendants have had an active 
criminal justice status at the time of arrest, including 35% in 
the 2000 study.  The percentage of defendants with a felony arrest
record in 2000 (62%) was slightly higher than in 1998 (60%), and 
higher than in previous years when it averaged about 55%. The 
proportion of defendants with a felony conviction record in 2000 
(40%), was down slightly from 1998 (42%), but still higher than
the 36% recorded in 1996.

Since 1990 the percentage of felony defendants released prior to 
case disposition has been fairly consistent, ranging from 62% to 
65%, with 62% released in 2000. In 2000, the proportion of releases
accounted for by surety bond (37%) was greater than that accounted 
for by release on personal recognizance (26%), a finding first 
observed in the 1998 study.

From 1990 to 2000, the proportion of released defendants charged 
with misconduct such as failure to appear in court or rearrest has 
remained at just under a third, including 32% in 2000. Failure-to-
appear rates have held steady at about a fourth, including 22% in 
2000.

After reaching a high of 61% in the 1994 study, the felony conviction 
rate fell to 55% in 1996 and 52% in both 1998 and 2000. This rate was 
still slightly higher Figure 4Figure 4than the 50% rate in the 1990 
study. Sixty-four percent of defendants were convicted of a felony 
or a misdemeanor in 2000 the same as in 1990, but this continued a 
downward trend from a high of 72% in 1994.

For defendants convicted of a felony, sentences in 2000 (73%) were 
more likely to involve incarceration than in 1998 (70%) or 1996 
(69%). In 2000 a felony conviction was more likely to result in a 
sentence to prison (40%) than jail (33%) as was the case in 1990,
1992, and 1994. In 1996 and 1998, jail and prison sentences had 
almost equal frequencies. The use of probation as a sentence for 
felony convictions in 2000 (27%) was slightly less than in 1998 
and 1996, but about the same as in prior years. 

Felony defendants in large urban counties, 2000

Arrest charges

An estimated 54,590 felony cases were filed in the State courts of 
the Nation's 75 largest counties during May 2000. About a fourth 
of defendants were charged with a violent offense, usually assault
(12.1%) or robbery (5.4%). About 1 in 40 defendants were charged 
with murder (0.9%) or rape (1.6%).  

Two-thirds of defendants were charged with either a drug (37%) or 
property (30%) offense. Nearly half of drug defendants, 17% of 
defendants overall, were charged with drug trafficking. A majority 
of property defendants were charged with larceny/theft (8.2% of
all defendants) or burglary (7.3%). About 9% of defendants were 
charged with a public-order offense. Often these charges were 
driving-related (3%) or weapons-related (2.6%).

Demographic characteristics

Eighty-one percent of defendants were male, including 90% or more 
of those charged with rape (99%), murder (96%), a weapons offense 
(93%), a driving-related offense (92%), or robbery (91%).  Women 
accounted for more than half of the defendants charged with fraud 
(55%) and more than a third of those charged with forgery (37%). 

Non-Hispanic blacks comprised at least half of the defendants 
charged with robbery (61%), a weapons offense (56%), drug trafficking 
(52%), or murder (50%). Non-Hispanic whites accounted for about half
of those charged with a driving-related felony (48%).

Half of defendants were under age 30. Eighteen percent were under 
age 21, including 38% of those charged with robbery and 27% of 
those charged with murder. Three percent of defendants were under 
age 18, including 13% of robbery defendants and 10% of murder 
defendants.

Criminal history

At the time of arrest, 35% of defendants had an active criminal 
justice status such as probation (14%), release pending disposition 
of a prior case (13%), or parole (6%). Burglary defendants (44%)
were the most likely to have had a criminal justice status when 
arrested, followed by drug trafficking, robbery, and motor vehicle 
theft defendants, at 39% each. 

Seventy-four percent of all defendants had been arrested previously, 
with 45% having at least five prior arrest charges.  Sixty-two 
percent of defendants had a felony arrest record.  Fifty-eight 
percent of defendants had at least one prior conviction, including 
40% with one or more felony convictions.
 
Pretrial release and detention

Thirty-eight percent of all defendants were detained until the court 
disposed of their case, including 7% who were denied bail. Half or 
more of defendants charged with murder (87%), robbery (56%), motor 
vehicle theft (54%), or burglary (51%)were detained until case
disposition.

Defendants with an active criminal justice status (54%) were nearly 
twice as likely to be detained until case disposition as those 
without such a status (30%). Defendants on parole (77%) were the 
most likely to be detained. 

Defendants were most likely to be released on commercial surety 
bond (37% of all releases), followed by release on personal 
recognizance (26%). The next most common types of pretrial release 
were conditional release (14%), deposit bond (10%), and unsecured 
bond (9%).
  
An estimated 32% of released defendants committed one or more types 
of pretrial misconduct while in a release status. Twenty-two percent 
failed to appear in court as scheduled. Sixteen percent were 
rearrested for a new offense, including 10% for a felony. 

Adjudication

A fourth of defendants had their case adjudicated within 1 month of 
arrest, and half within 3 months. At the end of the 1-year study 
period, 86% of all cases had been adjudicated.

Sixty-four percent of the cases adjudicated within 1 year resulted 
in a conviction. Fifty-two percent of defendants were convicted of 
a felony, and 12% of a misdemeanor. Felony conviction rates were 
highest for those originally charged with a driving-related offense 
(70%), drug trafficking (67%), or murder (64%). Fraud (33%) and 
assault (35%) defendants had the lowest felony conviction rates.

Nearly all (95%)convictions obtained during the 1-year study period 
were the result of a guilty plea. About 4 in 5 guilty pleas were to 
a felony. Seventy-eight percent of trials resulted in a guilty 
verdict, including 81% of bench trials and 74% of jury trials.  

Sentencing

About two-thirds of convicted defendants were sentenced within 
1 day of adjudication.  Nearly three-fourths of all sentences 
for felony convictions were either to prison (40%) or jail (33%).  
Ninety-six percent of those convicted of murder were sentenced 
to prison. A large majority of robbery (73%) and rape (56%) 
convictions also resulted in prison sentences. Nearly all 
convicted defendants who did not receive an incarceration 
sentence were placed on probation.  

Sixty-two percent of those with multiple prior felony convictions 
were sentenced to prison following a felony conviction in the 
current case, compared to 24% of those with no prior felony 
convictions.
  
Excluding life sentences, the mean prison sentence for violent 
felony convictions was about 8 years, and the median was 5 years. 
For nonviolent felonies, the mean was about 31/2 years and the 
median, 2 years.  Murder (15 years) and rape (7 years) convictions 
carried the longest median prison sentences. About 1 in 3 
convicted murderers received a life sentence. 
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State Court Processing Statistics

Since 1988, the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) has sponsored a 
biennial data collection on the processing of felony defendants in 
the State courts of the Nation's 75 most populous counties. 
Previously known as the National Pretrial Reporting Program, this 
data collection series was renamed the State Court Processing 
Statistics (SCPS) program in 1994 to better reflect the wide range 
of data elements collected.  

The SCPS program collects data on the demographic characteristics, 
criminal history, pretrial processing, adjudication, and sentencing 
of felony defendants. The SCPS data do not include Federal defendants.
The reader should refer to the annual BJS Compendium of Federal 
Justice Statistics for information on the processing of Federal 
defendants. 

The 2000 SCPS collected data for 14,877 felony cases filed during 
May 2000 in 40 large counties. These cases, which were tracked 
for up to 1 year, were part of a 2-stage sample that was
representative of the estimated 54,590 felony cases filed in the 
Nation's 75 most populous counties during that month. A small 
number of cases (162 weighted) were omitted from analysis as they 
could not be classified into 1 of the 4 major crime categories 
(violent, property, drug, and public-order offenses).  

In 2000, the 75 largest counties accounted for 37% of the U.S. 
population. According to the FBI's Uniform Crime Reports program 
for 2000, these jurisdictions accounted for 49% of all reported 
serious violent crimes in the United States, including 60% of
robberies, 47% of murders and non-negligent manslaughters, 46% 
of aggravated assaults, and 37% of forcible rapes.  

These counties accounted for 39% of all reported serious property 
crimes, including 55% of motor vehicle thefts, 37% of burglaries, 
and 37% of larceny/thefts.  

Arrest Charges

During May 2000, about a fourth of the felony defendants in the 
75 largest counties were charged with a violent offense (24.9%). 
About half of those charged with a violent felony, 12.1% of 
defendants overall, faced assault charges, and about a fifth,
5.4% of defendants overall, were charged with robbery. Murder 
defendants comprised 3.6% of the defendants charged with a violent 
felony, and 0.9% of all felony defendants. Rape defendants accounted 
for 6.5% of the defendants charged with a violent felony, and 1.6% 
of all felony defendants. (See Methodology for the specific crimes 
included in each offense category.)

For about 3 in 8 defendants, the most serious arrest charge was 
a drug offense (36.8%). Nearly half (47%) of drug defendants were 
charged with drug trafficking. Overall, defendants were more likely 
to be charged with drug trafficking (17.2%) or other drug offenses 
(19.6%) than any other type of offense.

About 3 in 10 felony defendants were charged with a property 
offense (29.5%). More than a fourth of property defendants, 8.2% 
of defendants overall, were charged with larceny/theft offenses, 
and about a fourth, 7.3% overall, were charged with burglary.  

Defendants charged with a public-order offense comprised 8.7% of 
all defendants. About 2 in 3 public-order defendants faced a 
weapons (2.6%) or driving-related (3.0%) charge.  

The percentage of felony defendants in the 75 largest counties 
facing a drug-related charge (36.8%) was about the same as in 1998 
(37.1%), but significantly higher than the low of 30% in 1992. The 
percentage of property defendants in 2000 (29.5%) ended a trend of 
small decreases that have occurred since a high of 34.9% in 1992. 
The percentage of defendants charged with a violent offense in 2000 
(24.9%) was about the same as in 1998 (24.0%), and slightly lower 
than the high of 26.5% in 1992.  

More than half of all felony defendants (56%) faced at least one 
additional charge, and 39% were charged with at least one additional 
felony.  Defendants whose most serious charge was drug trafficking
(70%) were the most likely to have been charged with one or more 
additional offenses. More than three-fifths of defendants whose 
most serious arrest charge was murder (64%), rape (64%), robbery
(65%), or burglary (63%) were also charged with one or more 
additional offenses. 

A majority of rape (60%), murder (59%), robbery (57%), and drug 
trafficking (56%) defendants faced at least one additional felony 
charge. About half of defendants charged with burglary (50%) or 
motor vehicle theft (49%) faced one or more additional felony 
charges. More than two-fifths of forgery (46%), fraud (43%), 
and weapons (42%)defendants faced multiple felony charges.

Demographic characteristics

Forty-five percent of the felony defendants in the 75 largest
counties were non-Hispanic blacks, 30% were non- Hispanic
whites, 23% were Hispanics of any race, and 2% were non-Hispanic 
members of some other race. 
 
Non-Hispanic blacks comprised a majority of the defendants charged 
with robbery (61%), a weapons offense (56%), or drug trafficking 
(52%). The smallest percentage of black defendants was found among
those charged with a driving-related offense (28%).

Non-Hispanic whites accounted for the largest percentage among 
defendants facing driving-related charges (48%). This was about 
3 times the percentage accounted for by whites among defendants 
charged with robbery (14%) or a weapons offense (17%).  

The largest percentage of Hispanics was found among defendants 
charged with motor vehicle theft (31%). The smallest percentages 
of Hispanics were found among defendants charged with fraud 
(13%), forgery (14%), or larceny/theft (15%).

Overall, 81% of felony defendants in the 75 largest counties 
were male. Men comprised the largest percentages among defendants 
charged with rape (99%), murder (96%), weapons offenses (93%), 
driving-related offenses (92%), robbery (91%), burglary (88%), or 
motor vehicle theft (88%). Women accounted for 19% of defendants, 
including 55% of those charged with fraud and 37% of those charged 
with forgery.

The average age of defendants at the time of arrest was 31 years. 
By specific offense, the average age ranged from 26 years for 
robbery defendants to 36 for those charged with a driving-related 
offense.  

About 1 in 8 robbery defendants and 1 in 10 murder defendants were 
under age 18. An estimated 21% of defendants were 40 or older, 
including about a third of those charged with a driving-related 
offense (32%).  Defendants charged with robbery (10%), motor 
vehicle theft (11%), a weapons offense (12%), or murder (13%) were 
the least likely to be 40 or older.

Overall, 32% of defendants were under age 25. More than half of 
robbery defendants (56%) were under age 25, as were more than two-
fifths of defendants charged with a weapons offense (47%), murder
(44%), vehicle theft (43%), or burglary (42%). Defendants charged 
with a driving-related offense (14%) or fraud (17%) were the least 
likely to be under age 25.

About 18% of defendants were under the age of 21 at the time of 
arrest.  About 3 in 8 robbery defendants (38%) were under age 21, 
as were more than a fifth of those charged with murder (27%), 
burglary (26%), a weapons offense (25%), or vehicle theft (24%). 
Defendants charged with a driving-related offense (4%) or fraud 
(6%) were the least likely to be this young.  

Males formed a higher percentage of defendants under age 18 (91%) 
than of other age groups. The largest percentage of female 
defendants was in the 35 to 39 age group (24%). A majority of the 
defendants under age 18 were black (54%), compared to less than 
half in each of the other age groups.

Black males comprised the largest proportion of defendants in each 
age group. This effect was most pronounced in the under-age-18 
category in which black males (48%) accounted for nearly 3 times 
the percentage of white males (18%), and nearly twice the percentage 
of Hispanic males (25%). It was least pronounced in the age 25 to 
39 categories, where black males accounted for a proportion of 
defendants closer to that accounted for by Hispanic and white
males. 

Hispanic females comprised the smallest proportion of defendants 
in each age group. Black females constituted a slightly higher 
percentage than white females in all age categories, but for no 
more than 12% of the defendants in any single age category.

Criminal history

Criminal justice status at time of arrest

Thirty-five percent of felony defendants had an active criminal 
justice status at the time of their arrest on the current felony 
charge.  Among defendants charged with a violent offense, 31% 
had an active criminal justice status, ranging from 39% of 
robbery defendants to 25% of rape defendants. 

Thirty-six percent of property defendants had a criminal justice 
status, including 44% of defendants charged with burglary and 
39% of those charged with motor vehicle theft. Among property 
defendants, those charged with fraud (21%) were the least likely
to have had an active criminal justice status at the time of 
arrest.

Among drug defendants, 36% had a criminal justice status overall. 
Those charged with drug trafficking (39%) were more likely to 
have a criminal justice status than those charged with other 
drug offenses (34%). 

Forty percent of public-order defendants had an active criminal 
justice status at the time of the current arrest. This included 
32% of those charged with a weapons or driving-related offense, 
and 53% of those charged with other public-order offenses.

Some defendants with a criminal justice status had more than one 
type of status. When just the most serious criminal justice status 
is considered, 14% of defendants were on probation, 13% had been
released pending disposition of a previous case, and 6% were on 
parole at the time of the current arrest.  Allowing for multiple 
types of criminal justice status, 6% of defendants were on parole, 
15% were on probation, and 15% had been released pending case
disposition. 

The percentage of defendants on parole at the time of their current 
felony arrest ranged from 8% of those charged robbery or motor 
vehicle theft, to 2% of those charged with fraud. Other offenses 
with at least 5% of the defendants on parole at the time of arrest
included burglary (7%), weapons offenses (7%), murder (6%), drug 
trafficking (6%), and larceny/theft (6%). 

The highest percentages of defendants on probation at the time of 
arrest were among those charged with motor vehicle theft (22%) or 
burglary (19%). Defendants charged with rape (8%) or fraud (9%)
were less likely to have been on probation at the time of arrest.
  
Twenty percent of defendants charged with robbery or drug trafficking 
had been released pending disposition of a prior case when they 
were arrested on the current felony charge. These defendants were
more than twice as likely as those charged with fraud (8%) to have 
had such a status at the time of the current arrest. 
Prior arrests

Seventy-four percent of all defendants had at least one prior 
felony or misdemeanor arrest.  Defendants whose most serious 
current arrest charge was for a public-order (80%) or drug (78%) 
offense were more likely to have been previously arrested than 
those charged with a property (72%) or violent (69%)offense.  

Among defendants charged with a violent offense, robbery (73%) 
and assault (72%) defendants were more likely to have an arrest 
record than those charged with murder (67%) or rape (58%). 

Among property defendants, those charged with burglary (82%) or 
motor vehicle theft (78%) were the most likely to have been 
arrested previously, followed by those charged with larceny/theft 
(72%) or forgery (69%).  Defendants charged with fraud (50%) were
the least likely, among property defendants, to have one or more 
prior arrests. 

Among public-order defendants, defendants charged with a driving-
related felony (85%) were more likely to have an arrest record 
than those facing weapon charges (72%).

Among defendants with an arrest record, about 7 in 8 had more than 
one prior arrest charge, and a majority had at least five. Overall, 
65% of defendants had two or more prior arrest charges, and 45% had 
five or more.  Defendants charged with burglary (52%), a driving-
related offense (51%), or motor vehicle theft (51%) were the most 
likely to have 5 or more prior arrest charges, and those charged 
with fraud (21%)the least likely.
  
An estimated 26% of defendants had 10 or more prior arrest charges. 
This included 33% of defendants charged with a driving-related 
offense, 32% of burglary defendants, and 30% of robbery defendants.

Three-fourths of the defendants under age 18 had no previous arrests. 
This proportion dropped to about two-fifths among defendants age 18 
to 20, about a fourth among those aged 21 to 29, and about a fifth
among those age 30 to 49. About 3 in 10 defendants age 50 or older 
had no arrest record.  

Approximately a fifth of the defendants age 18 to 20 had five or 
more prior arrests. This proportion rose to nearly two-fifths in 
the 21-to-24 age range, nearly half in the 25-to-29 age range, and 
more than half in the 30-to-49 age range. In the latter age range,
defendants were nearly 3 times as likely to have five or more prior 
arrests as no prior arrests.

Among defendants with an arrest record, about 4 in 5 had been 
arrested at least once for a felony. Overall, three-fifths of 
defendants had a felony arrest record.  Nearly half of all 
defendants had multiple prior felony arrest charges, including 
25% with five or more.

More than half of the defendants facing a current charge for 
a violent felony had been previously arrested for a felony, 
including 64% of robbery defendants and 60% of murder 
defendants.  Thirty-one percent of robbery defendants had 5 
or more prior felony arrest charges, including 16% with 10 
or more.  

Sixty percent of property defendants had one or more prior 
felony arrests.  More than two-thirds of those currently 
charged with burglary (70%) or motor vehicle theft (69%) had 
a prior felony arrest record.  Fifteen percent of burglary 
defendants and 14% of motor vehicle theft defendants had 10 
or more prior felony arrest charges. 

Sixty-six percent of drug defendants had at least one prior 
felony arrest charge, and 27% had five or more.

Sixty-seven percent of public-order defendants had been 
previously arrested for a felony, including 27% with five 
or more prior felony charges.    

Prior convictions

Fifty-eight percent of felony defendants in the 75 largest 
counties had at least one prior conviction for a misdemeanor 
or a felony. More than three- fourths of those with a 
conviction record, accounting for 45% of defendants overall, 
had more than one prior conviction. Twenty-two percent of all 
defendants had five or more prior convictions.

Among defendants charged with a violent offense, 52% had at 
least one prior conviction. Assault (54%)and robbery (53%) 
defendants were more likely to have a conviction record than 
other defendants charged with a violent offense (47%).

Fifty-five percent of property defendants had been convicted 
previously, including 65% of burglary defendants. Fifty percent 
of burglary defendants had multiple prior convictions, including 
30% with five or more.  

Sixty-two percent of drug defendants had at least one prior 
conviction. About half (48%) had two or more, and about a fourth 
(23%)had at least five.  

Among public-order defendants,67% had a conviction record, and 
26% had five or more. About three-fourths of the defendants 
facing driving-related charges (77%) had at least one prior 
conviction of some type, and three-fifths had multiple prior
convictions. 

More than two-thirds of the defendants with a conviction record, 
40% of defendants overall, had at least one prior conviction for 
a felony.  

Thirty-three percent of defendants whose current charge was for 
a violent felony had previously been convicted of a felony. 
Among these defendants, the percentage with a prior felony 
conviction ranged from 40% among those charged with robbery to 
26% of those charged with rape.  

Thirty-nine percent of property defendants had a felony conviction 
record, including nearly half of those charged with motor vehicle 
theft (48%) or burglary (47%). Defendants charged with fraud (21%) 
were the least likely to have a prior felony conviction.

Forty-four percent of the defendants whose most serious current 
arrest charge was for a drug offense had been previously convicted 
of a felony.  There was no variation by type of drug offense. 

A majority of the defendants with a felony conviction record, 25% 
of defendants overall, had multiple prior felony convictions. Six 
percent of all defendants had five or more prior felony 
convictions. 

By specific offense, defendants charged with burglary (30%) or 
motor vehicle theft (29%) were the most likely to have multiple 
prior felony convictions.  Eleven percent of burglary defendants 
had five or more such convictions. Defendants charged with fraud 
(11%)were the least likely to have more than one prior felony 
conviction.    

Eighty-nine percent of defendants under age 18 at the time of 
the current arrest had no prior adult convictions. Six percent 
of these defendants had been previously convicted of at least 
one felony. In the 18-to-20 age range, 67% of defendants had no
prior convictions, while 18% had at least one prior felony 
conviction.

A majority of the defendants age 21 or older had a conviction 
record, and defendants ages 25 to 49 were more likely to have 
a felony conviction record than no prior convictions. About 
half of defendants age 30 to 49 had a felony conviction 
record.

For nearly a fourth of the defendants with a prior felony 
conviction, 10% of defendants overall, their criminal history 
included at least one conviction for a violent felony. Thirteen 
percent of the defendants currently charged with a violent 
offense had a prior conviction for a violent felony. 

By specific arrest charge, the percentage of defendants previously 
convicted of a violent felony was highest among those charged with 
robbery (16%), a weapons offense (13%), or assault (13%).
Defendants charged with fraud (4%) or forgery (6%)were the least 
likely to have a prior conviction for a violent felony.

For 38% of motor vehicle theft defendants, the most serious prior 
conviction was a nonviolent felony. This was also the case for 
36% of defendants charged with burglary or drug trafficking, 
and 34% of those charged with a driving-related offense.

Defendants charged with a driving-related offense (33%) were much 
more likely than other defendants to have a conviction record that 
consisted only of misdemeanors. The next most likely were defendants
charged with rape (21%) or assault (21%).

Pretrial release and detention

Rates of release and detention

An estimated 62% of felony defendants in the 75 largest counties 
were released prior to the final disposition of their case. By 
general offense category, defendants charged with a violent 
offense (56%) were less likely to be released than those whose 
most serious arrest charge was a public-order (66%), drug (64%), 
or property (64%) offense.  

Within the violent offense category,  release rates varied
greatly. Just 13% of murder defendants were released
compared to 61% of those charged with assault.  Fifty-six 
percent of rape defendants and 44% of robbery defendants were 
released before the court disposed of their case.
 
Among defendants charged with a property offense, just under 
half of those charged with burglary (49%) or motor vehicle 
theft (46%) were released prior to case disposition.  Higher 
proportions of those charged with fraud (85%), forgery (72%), 
or larceny/theft (68%) were released.  

Among drug defendants, those charged with drug trafficking (62%) 
were slightly less likely to be released than those charged with 
other drug offenses (66%).  Among public-order defendants, those 
charged with a driving-related (75%) or weapons (70%) offense 
were more likely to be released than those charged with other
public-order offenses.

Among the 38% of defendants who were detained in jail until case 
disposition, about 5 in 6 had a bail amount set but did not post 
the money required to secure release. Detained murder defendants 
were the exception to this rule; a majority of them, 46% of 
murder defendants overall, were ordered held without bail. 
Overall, 7% of felony defendants in the 75 largest counties were
denied bail.

A slight majority of the defendants released prior to case
disposition, 32% of defendants overall, were released under 
financial conditions that required the posting of bail (see 
Methodology for definitions related to pretrial release). The 
most common type of financial release was surety bond (24% of 
all defendants and 37% of released defendants), which involves 
the services of a commercial bail bond agent.  

Other types of financial release were deposit bond (6% of all 
defendants and 10% of released defendants), full cash bond (2%), 
and property bond (less than 1%). All of these types of bonds 
are posted directly with the court without the use of a bail 
bond agent.

Just under half of released defendants, 30% of defendants overall, 
were released under nonfinancial conditions not requiring the 
posting of bail.

Release on personal recognizance (16% of all defendants and 26% 
of released defendants), was the type of nonfinancial release 
used most. Other nonfinancial types of release included 
conditional release (8% of all defendants and 14% of released
defendants), and release on unsecured bond (6% and 9%).

A small number of defendants were released prior to case disposition 
as the result of an emergency release used to relieve jail crowding. 
Such releases did not involve the use of any of the release types 
mentioned above.

Bail amounts

Overall, 63% of felony defendants had a bail amount set by the 
court, and were required to post all or part of that amount to 
secure release while their case was pending.  The remainder were 
granted nonfinancial release (30%), ordered held without bail (7%), 
or were part of an emergency release (less than 0.5%). More than 
half of those with a bail amount had it set at $10,000 or more,
and a fifth had it set at $50,000 or more.

Among defendants with a bail amount set, those charged with a 
violent offense (31%) were about twice as likely as other 
defendants to have it set at $50,000 or more. About 7 in 8 murder 
defendants (88%) with a bail amount had it set at $50,000 or more, 
as did about a third of robbery (36%) and rape (33%) defendants.  

Among property defendants with a bail amount set, those charged with 
burglary (19%) were the most likely to have bail set at $50,000 or 
more.  Defendants charged with drug trafficking (22%) were twice as 
likely to have bail set at $50,000 or more as other drug defendants 
(11%). Among public-order defendants, those charged with a weapons 
offense (18%) were nearly twice as likely as those charged with a
driving-related offense (10%) to have bail set this high.

Overall, defendants who were detained until case disposition had a 
median bail amount 5 times that of defendants who secured release 
($25,000 versus $5,000). The mean bail amount for detained 
defendants ($76,200) was about 6 times that of defendants who
secured release ($12,800).  

Detained murder defendants had the highest median ($500,000) and 
mean ($692,800) bail amounts. Overall, the median bail amount for 
murder defendants was $250,000 and the mean was $587,800.   

Overall, about half (51%) of defendants who were required to post 
bail to secure release did so. About three-fourths of defendants 
with a bail set at under $5,000 (76%) posted the amount needed for 
release, as did nearly two-thirds of those with a bail amount of 
$5,000 to $9,999 (64%). In contrast, about 1 in 6 defendants with 
bail set at $50,000 or more (17%), and just over 1 in 3 defendants 
with a bail amount of $25,000 to $49,999 (36%) met the financial 
conditions required for release.

Defendants released on full cash bond posted a median of $1,000 
and a mean of $4,100 to secure release. Among defendants given 
financial release, the median and mean bail amounts were slightly 
higher for those released on surety bond ($7,500, $13,800) than 
for those released on deposit bond ($5,000, $12,600).   

Unlike those released on full cash bond, defendants released on 
deposit bond generally posted 10% of the full bail amount with 
the court to secure release. However, they remained liable to 
the court for the full bail amount if they violated the terms 
of release.

Those released on surety bond paid a similar fee to a bail bond 
agent, who assumed liability to the court for the full bail 
amount if the defendant violated the terms of release.

Defendants released on an unsecured bond had a median bail amount 
of $5,000 and a mean bail amount of $8,000. These defendants did 
not have to post any of this amount, but like those on financial 
release, they were liable for the full bail amount if they 
violated the terms of release.

Time from arrest to release
                                 
Among defendants released prior to case disposition, 50% were 
released within 1 day of arrest, and 78% within 1 week. Nearly 
all releases during the 1-year study occurred within a month of 
arrest (93%).  
                                 
By general offense category, less than half of the defendants 
charged with a violent (42%) or drug (47%)offense were released 
within 1 day of arrest. A majority of those charged with a public-
order (55%) or property (57%) offense were released this quickly. 
                                 
By specific offense, murder defendants typically waited the longest 
to be released, and those charged with fraud had the shortest wait. 
Thirteen percent of released murder defendants were released within 
1 day of arrest, compared to 75% of those charged with fraud. After 
1 month, 47% of murder defendant releases had occurred, compared to 
nearly all of the releases of other defendants.

When differences among offense types are held constant, defendants 
released under financial terms generally took longer to secure their 
release than those who were released under nonfinancial conditions.
Among defendants who were released under financial conditions, the 
amount of time from arrest to pretrial release tended to increase 
as the bail amount did.

Criminal history and probability 
of release

Court decisions about bail and pretrial release are primarily 
based on the judgment of whether a defendant will appear in 
court as scheduled and whether there is potential danger to 
the community from crimes that a defendant may commit if 
released. Many States have established specific criteria to 
be considered by the courts when setting release conditions.  

The SCPS data illustrate how release rates vary with some of 
these factors. For example, 70% of the defendants without an 
active criminal justice status when arrested for the current 
offense were released prior to case disposition, compared to 
46% of those with such a status. Defendants on parole (23%) 
or probation (41%)at the time of arrest were the least likely 
to be released.  This compared with 60% of those released
pending disposition of a prior case.

Seventy-nine percent of the defendants with no prior arrests 
were released, compared to 56% of those who had been previously 
arrested. Among defendants with an arrest record, those who 
had never missed a court appearance (60%) had a higher 
probability of being released than those who had failed to 
appear at least once during a previous case (50%). 

About three-fourths of defendants without a prior conviction 
(77%)were released prior to disposition of the current case, 
compared to about half of those with a conviction record(51%).  
Among defendants with a conviction record, release rates ranged 
from 63% for those with a single prior conviction to 42% for 
those with five or more.

Less than half of the defendants with one or more prior felony 
convictions (45%) were released prior to disposition of the 
current case, compared to about two-thirds of those whose prior 
convictions involved only misdemeanors (65%).  Those with a 
prior conviction for a violent felony (42%) had a slightly lower 
release rate than those whose most serious prior conviction was 
for a nonviolent felony (46%).

Conduct of released defendants

Among defendants who were released prior to case disposition, 
32% committed some type of misconduct while in a release status. 
This may have been in the form of a failure to appear in court, 
an arrest for a new offense, or some other violation of release 
conditions that resulted in the revocation of that release by 
the court. 

By original offense category, the proportion of defendants charged 
with pretrial misconduct was highest for drug defendants (38%) and 
lowest for those released after being charged with a violent 
offense (24%). Thirty percent of defendants charged with a property 
or public-order offense committed some type of pretrial misconduct.  

By specific arrest offense, rates of pretrial misconduct were 
lowest  among defendants released after being charged with 
murder (12%), rape (12%), or fraud (18%).

Failure to appear in court

Seventy-eight percent of the defendants who were released prior 
to case disposition made all scheduled court appearances. Bench 
warrants for failing to appear in court were issued for the 
remaining 22%.  
                  
Released drug defendants (27%)had the highest failure-to-appear
rate followed by property (21%)and public-order (20%)defendants. 
Thirteen percent of defendants charged with a violent offense 
failed to appear in court as scheduled, ranging from 17% of 
robbery defendants to less than 10% of murder (6%)and rape (8%) 
defendants.
                                          
Nearly a fourth of the defendants who failed to appear in court, 
6% of all defendants, were still fugitives at the end of the 1-
year study period. The remainder were returned to the court 
(either voluntarily or not) before the end of the study.
                                          
Defendants released after being charged with a drug offense (7%) 
were more likely to be a fugitive after 1 year than defendants 
released after being charged with a violent (4%)or public-order 
(4%) offense. Six percent of released murder defendants were in 
a fugitive status at the end of the 1-year study period.
                                          
Rearrest for a new offense
                                          
Overall, 16% of released defendants were rearrested for a new 
offense allegedly committed while they awaited disposition of 
their original case. About three-fifths of these defendants, 
10% of all released defendants, were charged with a new felony.  
By specific original arrest charge, released drug trafficking 
(21%) and robbery (21%) defendants had the highest pretrial 
rearrest rate.  Defendants originally charged with rape (4%), 
murder (6%), or fraud (6%) had the lowest.  
                                          
About 1 in 7 defendants released after originally being
charged with drug trafficking (15%) or robbery (14%)were 
rearrested for a new felony while in a release status.
                                          
Adjudication

Time from arrest to adjudication

For 50% of felony defendants in the 75 largest counties, 
adjudication of their case occurred within 3 months of arrest, 
and 70% of cases were adjudicated within 6 months of arrest. 
By the end of the 1-year study period, 86% of all cases had 
been adjudicated.

While the overall median time from arrest to adjudication was 
92 days, it was about twice this long for rape defendants (187 
days), and was more than a year for murder defendants. Defendants 
charged with motor vehicle theft had the shortest median time
from arrest to adjudication (48 days).

At the end of the 1-year study period, 50% of murder defendants 
were awaiting adjudication of their case, compared to 25% of rape 
defendants, and no more than 18% of the defendants in any other 
offense category.  

For each offense other than murder (for which medians could not 
be calculated), the median time from arrest to adjudication was 
shorter for detained defendants than for those released pending 
case disposition.  

For most charged offenses, the median time from arrest to 
adjudication was about 2 months longer for defendants released 
after being charged than for those detained. The difference was 
about 11/2 months for weapons defendants, and about 1 month for
robbery defendants.  Overall, the median time from arrest to 
adjudication was 105 days for released defendants compared to 40 
days for those detained.

Excluding murder, the longest median time from arrest to 
adjudication among released defendants was for those charged 
with rape (155 days), followed by those charged with assault 
(123 days), robbery (120 days), or a driving-related offense 
(120 days).  Detained defendants charged with motor vehicle 
theft (28 days) had the shortest adjudication time.
 
Adjudication outcome

Sixty-four percent of the defendants whose cases were adjudicated 
within 1 year of arrest were convicted.  A majority of these 
convictions were for a felony, with 52% of defendants eventually 
convicted of a felony.

Defendants originally charged with a violent offense (56%) were 
less likely to eventually be convicted of a felony or a misdemeanor, 
than those originally charged with a drug (65%), property (66%), or
public-order (72%) offense. By specific type of arrest offense, the 
proportion of defendants convicted ranged from 86% of those charged 
with a driving-related felony to 52% of those charged with
fraud or assault. 
 
The probability of being convicted of a felony was highest for 
defendants whose most serious arrest charge was a driving-related 
offense (70%), drug trafficking (67%), or murder (64%). A majority 
of defendants charged with burglary (59%), a weapons offense (56%), 
motor vehicle theft (56%), or forgery (53%) were also convicted of 
a felony. The lowest felony conviction rates were for fraud (33%) 
and assault (35%)defendants.

In most cases where the defendant was not convicted, it was because 
the charges against the defendant were dismissed. An estimated 26% 
of all cases ended in this way. Defendants charged with assault 
(40%) were the most likely to have their case dismissed, and those 
charged with a driving-related offense (10%) the least likely.  

About 9% of cases had other outcomes such as diversion or deferred
adjudication. Defendants charged with fraud (30%) were the most 
likely to have had their case handled in this manner.  

Seventy-seven percent of the defendants who were detained until 
case disposition were eventually convicted of some offense, 
compared to 55% of those released pending disposition. 
Approximately two-thirds of detained defendants (68%) were 
convicted of a felony, compared to about two-fifths of released 
defendants (42%).

Adjudication outcome was related to some extent to the number and 
type of the original arrest charges filed. Seventy-two percent 
of defendants who were originally charged with more than 1 felony 
were eventually convicted of some offense, compared to 59% of the 
defendants who had no additional felony charges.

Sixty-three percent of defendants whose original arrest charges 
included more than one felony were eventually convicted of a 
felony compared to 45% of those with no additional felony 
charges. Among the defendants who had no additional felony 
charges, those who were charged with one or more misdemeanors 
(41%), were less likely to be convicted of a felony than those 
who had no additional charges of any type (46%).

Defendants with only one felony charge, but one or more additional 
misdemeanor charges, were more likely than other defendants to 
eventually be convicted of a misdemeanor (21%). This almost
always was the result of their pleading guilty to a misdemeanor 
charge instead of the original felony charge.

Overall, about three-fifths of defendants entered a guilty plea 
at some point, with 49% pleading guilty to a felony, and 12% to 
a misdemeanor.

Defendants charged with a driving-related offense had the highest 
overall plea rate (84%) and the highest felony plea rate (68%). 
A majority of the defendants in each offense category except 
murder (33%) and assault (48%) eventually pleaded guilty to
either a felony or a misdemeanor. 

A majority of the defendants charged with drug trafficking (63%), 
burglary (56%), motor vehicle theft (55%), a weapons offense(53%), 
or forgery (52%)pleaded guilty to a felony. Murder (31%) and 
assault (32%) defendants had the lowest felony plea rates.

An estimated 4% of the cases adjudicated within 1 year went to 
trial. Fifty-seven percent of these trials were bench trials, 
decided by a judge, and 43% were jury trials. An estimated 78% 
of all trials ended with a guilty verdict, and 22% with an 
acquittal.  Bench trials (81%) were more likely to result in a 
conviction than jury trials (74%). Sixty-nine percent of both 
bench and jury trials resulted in a felony conviction.     
Thirty-four percent of defendants facing murder charges went to 
trial, compared to no more than 10% of defendants charged with 
other offenses.  

Regardless of adjudication method, a majority of convicted 
defendants were convicted of the same felony offense as the 
original arrest charge. Among defendants arrested for murder 
and later convicted, 84% were convicted of murder. The 
corresponding percentages for other violent offenses were as
follows: robbery (66%), assault (59%), and rape (56%).

Among defendants originally charged with a property offense 
and later convicted, the percentages whose conviction offense 
corresponded with their most serious arrest charge were as 
follows: forgery (70%), motor vehicle theft (69%), larceny/
theft (66%), burglary (63%), and fraud (54%).

The conviction offense corresponded with the most serious arrest 
charge for 79% of defendants convicted after being charged with 
a driving-related offense, and for 76% of drug trafficking and 
weapons defendants.   

For most offenses a smaller percentage of defendants were in each 
felony conviction category than were in the original distribution 
by arrest charge.  The biggest drop was in the violent felony 
category, which accounted for about 25% of all defendants by arrest 
charge, but just 14% of them by conviction charge.  

Much of this change can be accounted for by the fact that about 
12% of all defendants were originally facing felony assault charges, 
but just 6% of all convictions were for such an offense. Overall, 
19% of convicted defendants were convicted at the
misdemeanor level.  

A majority of the defendants whose most serious arrest charge was 
for drug trafficking (56%), murder (55%), a weapons offense (53%), 
or a driving-related offense (68%)were eventually convicted of 
that same offense. This was true for slightly less than half of 
the defendants originally charged with forgery (48%), motor 
vehicle theft (45%), burglary (45%), or larceny/theft (44%). 
Thirty percent of defendants originally facing felony assault 
charges were eventually convicted of such an offense.   

Case processing statistics

Among the approximately 47,000 cases with a known adjudication 
outcome that occurred within 1 year of arrest, about 29,000 were 
disposed by a guilty plea.  Based on the 94% of cases for which 
the adjudication date was known, about a fourth of pleas occurred
within 1 month of arrest and about three-fifths within 3 months 
of arrest.  

The next most common type of adjudication, dismissal of the 
charges against the defendant, occurred in about 12,500 cases. 
About two-fifths (39%) of all dismissals occurred within the 
first month after arrest and 66% within 3 months.  

Trials occurred in about 1,800 cases. About 3% of trials were 
completed within a month of arrest and about 1 in 7 within 3 
months of arrest.  

Guilty pleas accounted for 95% of the estimated 30,138 convictions 
obtained within 1 year of arrest. This included about 23,200 felony 
pleas and about 5,600 misdemeanor pleas.  Twenty-six percent of the
felony pleas occurred within 1 month of arrest, and 57% were obtained 
within 3 months of arrest. Thirty percent of the misdemeanor pleas 
were obtained within 1 month of arrest, and 61% within 3 months. 
 
Of the approximately 1,400 trial convictions obtained within 1 year, 
nearly all were for a felony, with an estimated 155 trials resulting 
in a misdemeanor conviction. About a sixth of all trial convictions
occurred within 3 months of arrest, and slightly less than half 
within 6 months of arrest.

Sentencing

Time from conviction to sentencing

About 2 in 3 convicted defendants were sentenced within 1 day 
of adjudication. Defendants convicted of a misdemeanor (83%) 
were more likely to be sentenced this quickly than those 
convicted of a felony (64%). 

Sentencing after a felony conviction was most likely to occur 
within 1 day if the conviction was for a drug (67%), property 
(65%), or public-order (63%) offense.  Fifty-five percent of 
defendants convicted of a violent offense were sentenced this 
quickly.  

Within the violent offense category, the proportion of convicted 
defendants sentenced within 1 day ranged from less than half of 
those convicted of rape (42%)or murder (46%)to about three-fifths
of those convicted of robbery (61%). A majority of the defendants 
in all other offense categories were sentenced within a day of 
conviction. 

Seventy-nine percent of defendants convicted of a felony received 
their sentence within 30 days, compared to 88% of those convicted 
of a misdemeanor.  Ninety-one percent of defendants convicted of a 
felony and 95% of those convicted of a misdemeanor were sentenced 
within 60 days. 

Type and length of sentence

Sixty-nine percent of convicted defendants were sentenced to 
incarceration in a State prison or local jail.  Seventy-three 
percent of defendants convicted of a felony were sentenced to 
incarceration, compared to 53% of those convicted of a
misdemeanor. A majority of incarceration sentences following a
felony conviction, 40% of felony sentences overall, were to 
State prison.  

Nearly all convictions for murder (96%) resulted in a prison 
sentence, as did a majority of robbery (73%), and rape (56%) 
convictions. About half of defendants convicted of motor 
vehicle theft(51%) or burglary (49%) were sentenced to prison.  

Although less than half of defendants convicted of a weapons 
offense (44%), drug trafficking (42%), or a driving-related offense 
(40%) were sentenced to prison, a prison term was still more likely 
for these felonies than jail, probation, or a fine.     

Nearly all incarceration sentences for misdemeanor convictions, 
53% of all misdemeanor sentences, were to jail.  

Among defendants who were convicted but not sentenced to 
incarceration, 99% of those convicted of a felony and 88% of 
those convicted of a misdemeanor received a probation term. 
Probation sentences may have included a fine, restitution, 
community service, treatment, or other conditions.

Overall, 30% of convicted defendants received a sentence to probation 
without any incarceration. This included 27% of those convicted of a 
felony and 41% of those convicted of a misdemeanor. Defendants
convicted of forgery (40%) or fraud (35%) were the most likely to be 
sentenced to probation.   

Overall, 1% of convicted defendants were fined but were not sentenced 
to a term of incarceration or probation.  This included 6% of those 
convicted of a misdemeanor. Fines may have been in addition to other
court-ordered conditions. 

Among persons arrested and charged with a felony by the prosecutor, 
murder defendants had the highest probability of eventually being 
convicted and sentenced to prison (54%).  The next highest
probability of an eventual prison sentence was for defendants 
charged with robbery (32%).  Twenty-seven percent of defendants 
originally charged with burglary, motor vehicle theft, drug
trafficking, or a driving-related offense were eventually convicted 
and sentenced to prison. Defendants originally charged with fraud 
(8%) were the least likely to eventually be sentenced to prison.  

Defendants originally charged with a driving-related offense (35%) 
were the most likely to be eventually convicted and receive a jail 
sentence.    

A majority of defendants originally charged with a driving-related 
offense (62%), murder (57%), burglary (54%), or motor vehicle theft 
(53%) were eventually convicted and sentenced to either prison or 
jail. This was the case for half of drug trafficking defendants.

Defendants originally charged with assault (34%) or forgery (36%) 
were the least likely to eventually be convicted and sentenced to
incarceration.  

Among defendants convicted of a felony and sentenced to prison, 
the mean sentence was 55 months and the median was 32 months. By 
general conviction offense category, defendants convicted of a 
violent felony received the longest prison sentences (a mean of 99 
months and a median of 60 months), and those convicted of a public-
order felony the shortest (a mean of 39 months and a median of 24
months).  

By specific conviction offense, murderers received the longest 
prison terms, a mean of 282 months and a median of 180 months. 
Next were defendants convicted of rape with a mean prison 
sentence of 146 months, and a median of 84 months.  

Median prison sentences for other felony convictions included 60 
months for robbery, 48 months for assault, and 36 months for 
burglary, drug trafficking, or weapons offenses.

Thirty-two percent of all murder convictions resulted in a life 
sentence, compared to 4% of rape defendants and a maximum of 2% 
of the defendants convicted of any other offense.
 
In addition to those receiving life sentences,35% of the defendants 
convicted of murder were sentenced to more than 10 years in prison. 
Defendants convicted of rape (28%) or robbery (21%) were the next 
most likely to receive a prison term this long.

For defendants convicted of a felony and subsequently sentenced to 
jail, the mean jail term was 7 months and the median was 6 months. 
Misdemeanor convictions resulted in a mean jail term of 5 months 
and a median of 3 months.    

Excluding murder and rape (for which few cases resulted in a jail 
sentence), defendants sentenced to jail for robbery received the 
longest average sentence (a mean of 10 months and a median of 12
months).

About three-fifths of all jail sentences were for a period of 
greater than 3 months. About 4 in 5 jail sentences following 
convictions for violent felonies were for more than 3 months 
compared to about 2 in 3 sentences for other types of felonies.  

About 2 in 5 jail sentences following misdemeanor convictions 
were for more than 3 months.

For defendants sentenced to probation without incarceration for a 
felony, the median sentence length was 36 months, compared to 24 
months for a misdemeanor. Three percent of defendants convicted
of a felony were given a probation term of greater than 5 years, 
including 8% of those sentenced for a violent felony.

Some probation sentences were supplemented by one or more special
court-ordered conditions. For example,18% of the defendants who 
received a probation sentence were required to perform a
specified number of hours of community service work.

Fourteen percent of offenders sentenced to probation were required 
to pay restitution, including 33% of those convicted for a property-
related felony. Twelve percent of probation sentences included a
requirement that the defendant enter a treatment program.

Prior record and felony sentencing

For defendants convicted of a felony on their current charge, the 
probability of receiving a sentence to incarceration was highest 
if they had multiple prior felony convictions (86%). Seventy-nine 
percent of defendants with just one prior felony conviction, and
68% of those with only prior misdemeanor convictions were also 
sentenced to incarceration following a felony conviction in the 
current case. Defendants with no prior convictions of any type
(58%) were the least likely to receive a sentence to
incarceration for a felony conviction.  

Defendants with no prior convictions and whose current conviction 
was for a property or drug offense were the least likely of all 
defendants convicted of a felony to be sentenced to incarceration 
(53%).

Sixty-two percent of the defendants with more than one prior felony 
conviction were sentenced to prison for a new felony conviction. 
This included 75% of those whose current conviction was for a 
violent offense.  

Forty-six percent of the defendants with a single prior felony 
conviction were sentenced to prison following a felony conviction 
in the current case, including a majority of those convicted of 
a violent (55%) or public-order (53%) felony. 

Overall, about a fourth of defendants without a prior felony 
conviction received a prison sentence for a felony conviction in 
the current case.  However, about two-fifths of such defendants 
received a prison sentence when the current conviction was for a
violent felony.  

Defendants with a prior conviction record consisting solely of 
misdemeanors were more likely than other defendants to receive 
a jail sentence (44%). 

Defendants with no prior convictions of any kind whose current 
conviction was for a property (47%) or drug (46%) offense were 
the most likely to receive a probation sentence.  

Defendants convicted of a violent felony were much more likely to 
be sentenced to prison than jail or probation if they had at least 
one prior felony conviction. Incarceration was also likely for 
those without prior felony convictions, with jail and prison
having similar probabilities.    

Among defendants convicted of a nonviolent felony, a prison sentence 
was only slightly more likely than a jail sentence for those with 
one prior felony conviction, but much more likely if they had 
multiple prior felony convictions. For those with a prior
conviction record that consisted of only misdemeanors, jail was the 
most probable sentence. Probation was the most likely sentence if 
they had no conviction record at all. 

Methodology

The SCPS sample was designed and selected by U.S. Census Bureau 
staff. It is a 2-stage stratified sample, with 40 of the 75 
most populous counties selected at stage one and a systematic 
sample of State court felony filings (defendants) within each
county selected at stage two. The 40 counties were divided into 
4 first-stage strata based on court filing information. Ten 
counties were included in the sample with certainty because of 
their large number of court filings. The remaining counties were
allocated to the three noncertainty strata based on the variance 
of felony court dispositions. 

The second-stage sampling (filings) was designed to represent all 
defendants who had felony cases filed with the court during the 
month of May 2000. The participating jurisdictions provided data 
for every felony case filed on selected days during that month.
Depending on the first-stage stratum in which it had been placed, 
each jurisdiction provided filings data for 5,10, or 20 randomly 
selected business in May 2000. Data from jurisdictions that were 
not required to provide a full month of filings were weighted to
represent the full month.

The 2000 SCPS collected data for 14,877 felony cases filed during 
May 2000 in 40 large counties. These cases, which were tracked for 
up to 1 year, were part of a sample that was representative of the
estimated 54,590 felony cases filed in the Nation's 75 most populous 
counties during that month. A small number of cases (162 weighted) 
were omitted from analysis as they could not be classified into one 
of the four major crime categories (violent, property, drug, public 
order).

This report is based on data collected from the following counties:  
Alabama (Jefferson); Arizona (Maricopa, Pima); California (Alameda, 
Contra Costa, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino,
San Diego, San Mateo, Santa Clara); Connecticut (New Haven); Florida 
(Broward, Miami-Dade, Palm Beach, Pinellas); Georgia (Fulton); 
Hawaii (Honolulu); Illinois (Cook); Indiana (Marion); Maryland
(Baltimore, Montgomery); Michigan (Macomb, Wayne); New Jersey 
(Essex); New York (Bronx, Kings, Nassau, Westchester); Ohio 
(Franklin); Pennsylvania (Philadelphia); Tennessee (Shelby); Texas 
(Dallas, El Paso, Harris, Tarrant, Travis); Utah (Salt Lake City);
Virginia (Fairfax).

Because the data came from a sample, a sampling error is associated 
with each reported number. In general, if the difference between two 
numbers is greater than twice the standard error for that difference, 
we can say that we are 95% confident of a real difference and that 
the apparent difference is not simply the result of using a sample 
rather than the entire population. 

Offense categories Felony offenses were classified into 18 categories 
for this report. These were further classified into the four major 
crime categories of violent, property, drug, and public-order. 
The following listings are a representative summary of the crimes 
in each category; however, these lists are not meant to be 
exhaustive. All offenses, except for murder, include attempts and 
conspiracies to commit. 

Violent offenses

Murder -- Includes homicide, nonnegligent manslaughter, and voluntary
homicide. Excludes attempted murder (classified as felony assault),
negligent homicide, involuntary homicide, or vehicular manslaughter, 
which are classified as other violent offenses.

Rape -- Includes forcible intercourse, sodomy, or penetration with a 
foreign object. Does not include statutory rape or nonforcible acts 
with a minor or someone unable to give legal consent, nonviolent
sexual offenses, or commercialized sex offenses.

Robbery -- Includes unlawful taking of anything of value by force or 
threat of force. Includes armed, unarmed, and aggravated robbery, car-
jacking, armed burglary, and armed mugging.

Assault -- Includes aggravated assault, aggravated battery, attempted 
murder, assault with a deadly weapon, felony assault or battery on a 
law enforcement officer, and other felony assaults. Does not include
extortion, coercion, or intimidation.

Other violent offenses -- Includes vehicular manslaughter, involuntary
manslaughter, negligent or reckless homicide, nonviolent or non-forcible
sexual assault, kidnapping, unlawful imprisonment, child or spouse 
abuse, cruelty to a child, reckless endangerment, hit-and-run with 
bodily injury, intimidation, and extortion. 

Property offenses

Burglary -- Includes any type of entry into a residence, industry, 
or business with or without the use of force with the intent to 
commit a felony or theft. Does not include possession of burglary 
tools, trespassing, or unlawful entry for which the intent is not 
known.

Larceny/theft -- Includes grand theft, grand larceny, and any other 
felony theft, including burglary from an automobile, theft of rental 
property, and mail theft. Does not include motor vehicle theft, 
receiving or buying stolen property, fraud, forgery, or deceit.

Motor vehicle theft -- Includes auto theft, conversion of an automobile,
receiving and transferring an automobile, unauthorized use of a vehicle,
possession of a stolen vehicle, larceny or taking of an automobile. 

Forgery -- Includes forging of a driver's license, official seals, 
notes, money orders, credit or access cards or names of such cards 
or any other documents with fraudulent intent, uttering a forged
instrument, counterfeiting, forgery.

Fraud -- Includes possession and passing of worthless checks or 
money orders, possession of false documents or identification, 
embezzlement, obtaining money by false pretenses, credit card
fraud, welfare fraud, Medicare fraud, insurance claim fraud, 
fraud, swindling, stealing a thing of value by deceit, larceny 
by check.

Other property offenses -- Includes receiving or buying stolen 
property, arson, reckless burning, damage to property, criminal 
mischief, vandalism, criminal trespassing, possession of burglary 
tools, and unlawful entry for which the interest is unknown.  

Drug offenses

Drug trafficking -- Includes trafficking, sales, distribution, 
possession with intent to distribute or sell, manufacturing, and 
smuggling of controlled substances. Does not include possession 
of controlled substances.

Other drug offenses -- Includes possession of controlled substances,
prescription violations, possession of drug paraphernalia, and other 
drug law violations.

Public-order offenses

Weapons -- Includes the unlawful sale, distribution, manufacture, 
alteration, transportation, possession, or use of a deadly weapon 
or accessory.

Driving-related -- Includes driving under the influence of drugs or 
alcohol, driving with a suspended or revoked license, and any other 
felony in the motor vehicle code.

Other public-order offenses -- Includes flight/escape, parole or 
probation violations, prison contraband, habitual offender, 
obstruction of justice, rioting, libel, slander, treason, perjury,
prostitution, pandering, bribery, and tax law violations.  

Terms related to pretrial release

Released defendant -- Includes any defendant who was released from 
custody prior to the disposition of his or her case by the court. 
Includes defendants who were detained for some period of time before 
being released and defendants who were returned to custody after 
being released because of a violation of the conditions of pretrial 
release. The terms "on pretrial release" and "released pending 
disposition" are both used in this report to refer to all released
defendants.

Detained defendant -- Includes any defendant who remained in custody 
from the time of arrest until the disposition of his or her case by 
the court.  This report also refers to detained defendants as "not 
released."

Failure to appear -- Occurs when a court issues a bench warrant 
for a defendant's arrest because he or she missed a scheduled 
court appearance. 
 
Types of financial release

Surety bond -- A bail bond company signs a promissory note to the 
court for the full bail amount and charges the defendant a fee for 
the service (usually 10% of the full bail amount). If the defendant
fails to appear, the bond company is liable to the court for the 
full bail amount. Frequently the bond company requires collateral 
from the defendant in addition to the fee.

Deposit bond -- The defendant deposits a percentage (usually 10%) 
of the full bail amount with the court. The percentage of the bail 
is returned after the disposition of the case, but the court often 
retains a small portion for administrative costs. If the defendant 
fails to appear in court, he or she is liable to the court for the 
full bail amount.

Full cash bond -- The defendant posts the full bail amount in cash 
with the court. If the defendant makes all court appearances, the 
cash is returned. If the defendant fails to appear in court, the 
bond is forfeited.

Property bond -- Involves an agreement made by a defendant as a 
condition of pretrial release requiring that property valued at the 
full bail amount be posted as an assurance of his or her appearance 
in court. If the defendant fails to appear in court, the property is
forfeited. Also known as "collateral bond." 

Types of nonfinancial release 

Release on recognizance (ROR) -- The court releases the defendant 
on a signed agreement that he or she will appear in court as 
required. In this report, the ROR category includes citation releases 
in which arrestees are released pending their first court appearance 
on a written order issued by law enforcement or jail personnel. 

Unsecured bond -- The defendant pays no money to the court but is 
liable for the full amount of bail should he or she fail to appear 
in court.

Conditional release -- Defendants are released under specified 
conditions. Monitoring or supervision, if required, is usually
done by a pretrial services agency. In some cases, such as those
involving a third-party custodian or drug monitoring and treatment, 
another agency may be involved in the supervision of the defendant.  
Conditional release sometimes includes an unsecured bond.

Other type of release
                                          
Emergency release -- Defendants are released in response to a court 
order placing limits on a jail's population.
                                          
                                          
End of file
12/09/03 ih