Bureau of Justice Statistics

Special Report

July 2006, NCJ 205289

U.S. Department of Justice

Office of Justice Programs

Highlights

State Court Processing Statistics, 1990-2002

Violent Felons in Large Urban Counties

By Brian A. Reaves, Ph.D.

BJS Statistician

Convicted violent felons are among the 

most serious offenders in the criminal 

justice system. They are convicted of 

violent offenses, such as murder, rape, 

robbery, and assault, and given the most 

severe sanctions. A BJS analysis of felony convictions in the 75 most populous 

counties found that a majority of those 

committing violent felonies had — 

• multiple prior arrests

• at least 1 prior felony arrest

• at least 1 prior conviction.

Additionally, the analyses found that 

most convicted violent felons were — 

• detained from arrest through conviction

• sentenced to incarceration upon conviction

• sentenced to a prison term of 10 years 

or more if convicted of murder or rape.

These findings are based on data from 

the BJS State Court Processing Statistics (SCPS) program. The multi-year 

SCPS dataset includes a sample of felony cases filed during selected months 

in the 75 largest counties from 1990 

through 2002. About half of all reported 

violent crimes nationwide occur in these 

counties. In 2002 these counties 

accounted for — 

• 61% of robberies

• 51% of murders and non-negligent 

manslaughters

• 47% of aggravated assaults 

• 36% of forcible rapes.

Criminal history of persons convicted of a violent felony in the 75 largest 

counties, 1990-2002

Prior arrest

Prior felony arrest

Prior conviction

Prior felony conviction

Prior violent felony conviction

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%

Percent of violent felons

• From 1990 to 2002, 18% of felony 

convictions in the 75 largest counties 

were for violent offenses, including 7% 

for assault and 6% for robbery. 

• Six percent of those convicted of violent felonies were under age 18, and 

25% were under age 21. Ten percent 

of murderers were under 18, and 30% 

were under 21.

• Thirty-six percent of violent felons 

had an active criminal justice status at 

the time of their arrest. This included 

18% on probation, 12% on release 

pending disposition of a prior case, 

and 7% on parole.

• Seventy percent of violent felons had 

a prior arrest record, and 57% had at 

least one prior arrest for a felony. 

Sixty-seven percent of murderers and 

73% of those convicted of robbery or 

assault had an arrest record.

• A majority (56%) of violent felons 

had a prior conviction record. Thirtyeight percent had a prior felony conviction and 15% had a previous conviction for a violent felony. 

• Forty-one percent of murder convictions occurred at a trial rather than 

through a guilty plea. Trial convictions 

accounted for 12% of rape and robbery convictions and 11% of assault 

convictions. 

• Eighty-one percent of violent felons 

were sentenced to incarceration with 

50% going to prison and 31% to jail. 

Nineteen percent received a probation 

term without incarceration.

• Median prison sentences received 

included a maximum of 240 months 

for murder, 120 months for rape, 60 

months for robbery, and 48 months for 

other violent felonies.
2 Violent Felons in Large Urban Counties

This report presents data on approximately 9,000 persons convicted of 

committing violent felonies. When 

weighted, these cases represent about 

33,000 violent felons including — 

• 12,950 (39.5%) convicted of aggravated assault 

• 10,120 (30.9%) convicted of robbery

• 1,987 (6.1%) convicted of rape

• 1,077 (3.3%) convicted of murder or 

non-negligent manslaughter

• 6,650 (20.3%) convicted of other violent felonies.

The full SCPS dataset used for this 

report included a sample of 103,000 

felony cases. These cases represent 

about 386,000 defendants when 

weighted according to the sample 

design (see Methodology on page 9). 

About 180,000 of these defendants 

were convicted of a felony and 18.2% 

of these were convicted of a violent felony (table 1). 

Of the total number of felony convictions, 7.2% were for assault, 5.6% for 

robbery, 1.1% for rape, and 0.6% for 

murder, including nonnegligent manslaughter. An additional 3.7% were for 

other violent felonies such as involuntary manslaughter, negligent homicide, and kidnaping (see Methodology 

for offense category definitions).

Demographic characteristics 

Gender

Overall, 91% of violent felons in the 75 

largest counties were male, ranging 

from 89% of those convicted of felony 

assault to 99% of convicted rapists 

(table 2). Ninety-three percent of convicted robbers and 91% of convicted 

murderers were male.

Age

Six percent of violent felons were 

under age 18 at the time of their arrest, 

and 25% were under age 21 (table 3). 

Fourteen percent were 40 years or 

older. The mean age was 29.

Half of convicted murderers were 

younger than 25; 30% were under age 

21 and 10% were under 18. Twelve 

percent were at least 40 years old. The 

mean age for those convicted of murder was 27.

A third of rapists were under age 25: 

18% were under 21 and 4% were 

under 18. Nineteen percent were 40 or 

older. The mean age of those convicted of rape was 31.

A majority (56%) of robbers were 

under the age of 25. About 3 in 8 were 

under the age of 21 and 1 in 8 were 

under 18. Six percent were 40 years or 

older.

Among those convicted of assault, 4% 

were under 18, 22% under 21, and 

40% under 25. Sixteen percent were 

40 or older, and the mean age was 29.

Table 1. Felony convictions in 

the 75 largest counties, by most 

serious conviction charge, selected 

months, 1990-2002 

Most serious 

conviction charge

Felony convictions

Number Percent

All offenses 180,298 100.0%

Violent offenses 32,784 18.2%

Murder 1,077 0.6

Rape 1,987 1.1

Robbery 10,120 5.6

Assault 12,950 7.2

Other violent 6,650 3.7

Property offenses 59,026 32.7%

Burglary 16,878 9.4

Larceny/theft 17,827 9.9

Motor vehicle theft 6,121 3.4

Forgery 5,197 2.9

Fraud 4,021 2.2

Other property 8,981 5.0

Drug offenses 69,053 38.3%

Trafficking 35,341 19.6

Other drug 33,712 18.7

Public-order offenses 18,533 10.3%

Weapons 6,905 3.8

Driving-related 6,360 3.5

Other public-order 5,268 2.9

 Unclassified felonies 902 0.5%

Note: Detail may not add to total because of 

rounding.

Table 2. Gender of violent felons in the 75 largest counties, 

by most serious conviction charge, 1990-2002 

Most serious 

conviction charge Number

Percent of violent felons 

in the 75 largest counties 

Total Male Female

All violent felonies 32,736 100% 91% 9%

Murder 1,073 100% 91% 9%

Rape 1,987 100 99 1

Robbery 10,111 100 93 7

Assault 12,934 100 89 11

Other violent 6,631 100 89 11

Note: Data on gender of violent felons were available for 99.9% of all cases.

Table 3. Age at arrest of violent felons in the 75 largest counties, by most serious arrest charge, 1990-2002

 Percent of violent felons in the 75 largest counties

Most serious 

arrest charge Number Total Under 18 18-20 21-24 25-29 30-34 35-39 40 or older

Average age 

at arrest

All violent felonies 32,784 100% 6% 19% 18% 18% 15% 11% 14% 29 yrs.

Murder 1,077 100% 10% 20% 20% 18% 12% 8% 12% 27 yrs.

Rape 1,987 100 4 14 15 19 15 14 19 31

Robbery 10,120 100 12 25 19 16 14 7 6 25

Assault 12,950 100 4 18 18 18 15 12 16 29

Other violent 6,650 100 2 11 16 19 16 14 22 32

Note: Data on age of defendants were available for 100% of all cases. Detail may not add to total because of rounding.
Violent Felons in Large Urban Counties 3

Race and ethnicity

Forty-one percent of violent felons 

were black, non-Hispanic, 30% were 

Hispanic, and 26% were white, nonHispanic (table 4). Blacks (46%) comprised a higher percentage of murderers than Hispanics (27%) or whites 

(23%).

Whites (37%) and blacks (35%) 

accounted for higher percentages of 

rapists than Hispanics (23%). Blacks 

accounted for 54% of robbers, twice 

the percentage of Hispanics (27%) and 

about 3 times that of whites (17%).

Blacks (39%) accounted for about twofifths of those convicted of felony 

assault, compared to about a third who 

were Hispanic (32%), and a fourth who 

were white (26%).

Blacks (55%) comprised a majority of 

the violent felons who were under age 

18 (figure 1). Blacks accounted for 

about two-fifths of the total in each age 

category from 21 through 34. 

Whites accounted for 13% of the violent felons under age 18. The percentage of whites rose in each successive 

age category, and was about the same 

as for blacks in the 35 to 39 age category, and slightly higher in the 40 or 

older category.

Hispanics accounted for 30% of violent 

felons under age 18, and about a third 

in each age group from 18 to 29. The 

percentage of Hispanics was lower 

than that for both blacks and whites in 

the 35 and older age categories.

Criminal history

Criminal justice status at arrest

More than a third (36%) of violent felons had at least one type of active 

criminal justice status when arrested 

(table 5). Eighteen percent were on 

probation, 12% had been released 

pending disposition of a prior case, 

and 7% were on parole when arrested.

Robbers (45%) were the most likely to 

have had a criminal justice status at 

the time of arrest. An estimated 20% 

were on probation, 17% had been 

released pending disposition of a prior 

case, and 11% were on parole.

Race distribution of violent felons in the 75 largest counties, 

by age at arrest, 1990-2002 

Figure 1

Under 

18

18-20 21-24 25-29 30-34 35-39 40 or 

older

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Percent of violent felons

Age at arrest

Black, non-Hispanic

Hispanic, any race

White, non-Hispanic

Other race, non-Hispanic

Table 5. Criminal justice status of violent felons in the 75 largest counties, 

at the time of arrest, by most serious conviction charge, 1990-2002 

Percent of violent felons in the 75 largest counties with 

an active criminal justice status at the time of arrest

Most serious 

conviction charge Number Total Probation

Pretrial 

release Parole In custody Fugitive

All violent felonies 29,098 36% 18% 12% 7% 2% 2%

Murder 943 36% 15% 13% 8% 4% 3%

Rape 1,799 23 10 6 6 1 --

Robbery 8,582 45 20 17 11 2 3

Assault 11,818 35 19 11 6 2 1

Other violent 5,956 29 17 9 3 1 1

Note: Data on criminal justice status at time of arrest were available for 89% of all cases. Detail 

may not add to total because some defendants had more than one type of status. 

--Less than 0.5%.

Table 4. Race and Hispanic origin of violent felons in the 75 largest counties, 

by most serious conviction charge, 1990-2002 

Percent of violent felons in the 75 largest counties

Most serious 

conviction charge Number Total

Black, nonHispanicWhite, nonHispanicOther, nonHispanicHispanic, 

any race

All violent felonies 26,589 100% 41% 26% 3% 30%

Murder 888 100% 46% 23% 4% 27%

Rape 1,545 100 35 37 5 23

Robbery 7,955 100 54 17 2 27

Assault 10,761 100 39 26 4 32

Other violent 5,441 100 28 36 5 31

Note: Data on both race and Hispanic origin of defendants were available for 81% of all cases. 

In 2000 the overall percentage of the population of the 75 largest counties was 58% white 

non-Hispanic, 14% black non-Hispanic, 9% other race non-Hispanic, and 19% Hispanics of 

any race. Detail may not add to total because of rounding.
4 Violent Felons in Large Urban Counties

Those convicted of murder (36%) or 

felony assault (35%) were the next 

most likely to have had an active criminal justice status when arrested. Fifteen percent of murderers were on 

probation, 13% were on pretrial 

release, and 8% were on parole. Nineteen percent of those later convicted of 

assault were on probation when 

arrested, 11% on pretrial release, and 

6% on parole. 

Rapists (23%) were the least likely 

among violent felons to have a criminal 

justice status when arrested. Ten percent were on probation, 6% were on 

pretrial release, and 6% were on 

parole at the time of their arrest.

Prior arrests

An estimated 70% of violent felons in 

the 75 largest counties had been 

arrested previously (table 6). Seventythree percent of those convicted of 

robbery or assault had an arrest 

record, as did 67% of murderers, and 

53% of rapists. 

Sixty percent of violent felons had multiple prior arrest charges, including 

40% with 5 or more, and 23% with 10 

or more. About a fourth of those convicted of robbery (26%) or assault 

(24%) had 10 or more prior arrest 

charges, as did about a fifth of murderers (21%) and a tenth of rapists (10%).

A majority (57%) of violent felons had 

been arrested previously for a felony 

(table 7). The percentage with a felony 

arrest record ranged from 40% of rapists to 63% of robbers. Fifty-nine percent of those convicted of assault and 

58% of those convicted of murder had 

at least one prior felony arrest. 

Forty-four percent of violent felons had 

more than one prior felony arrest 

charge, and 22% had at least five. 

About half of those convicted of robbery (51%) had more than one prior 

felony arrest, as did nearly half of 

those convicted of assault (46%) or 

murder (44%). 

Twenty-eight percent of robbers had 5 

or more prior felony arrest charges and 

12% had at least 10. Among murderers, 21% had 5 or more prior felony 

arrest charges, and 10% had 10 or 

more. Rapists (12%) were least likely 

to have five or more prior felony arrest 

charges.

Table 6. Number of prior arrest charges of convicted violent felons in the 75 largest counties, 

by most serious conviction charge, 1990-2002 

Percent of violent felons in the 75 largest counties

Without 

prior 

arrest

With prior arrest

Most serious 

conviction charge Number

Number of prior arrest charges

Total Total 1 2-4 5-9 10 or more

All violent felonies 29,895 100% 30% 70% 10% 20% 17% 23%

Murder 960 100% 33% 67% 10% 20% 16% 21%

Rape 1,823 100 47 53 11 19 13 10

Robbery 9,137 100 27 73 9 20 18 26

Assault 11,815 100 27 73 11 21 17 24

Other violent 6,160 100 36 64 12 17 16 19

Note: Data on number of prior arrest charges were available for 91% of all cases. 

Detail may not add to total because of rounding. 

Table 7. Number of prior felony arrest charges of convicted violent felons in the 75 largest counties, 

by most serious conviction charge, 1990-2002 

Percent of violent felons in the 75 largest counties

Without prior 

felony arrest

With prior felony arrest

Most serious 

conviction charge Number Total

Number of prior felony charges

Total 1 2-4 5-9 10 or more

All violent felonies 29,962 100% 43% 57% 13% 22% 13% 9%

Murder 962 100% 42% 58% 14% 23% 11% 10%

Rape 1,823 100 60 40 10 19 7 5

Robbery 9,150 100 37 63 12 23 16 12

Assault 11,856 100 41 59 13 23 14 10

Other violent 6,171 100 52 48 12 19 11 6

Note: Data on number of prior felony arrest charges were available for 91% of all cases. 

Detail may not add to total because of rounding.
Violent Felons in Large Urban Counties 5

Prior convictions

Fifty-six percent of convicted violent 

felons in the 75 largest counties had 

been previously convicted of a felony 

or misdemeanor (table 8). About threefifths of those convicted of assault 

(60%) or robbery (59%) had at least 

one prior conviction. More than half of 

murderers (53%) had a conviction 

record as well. Rapists (42%) were the 

least likely to have already had a conviction record.

Three-fourths of the violent felons with 

a prior conviction record had been convicted on more than one charge. This 

included 21% with 5 or more prior convictions, and 7% with 10 or more.

Nearly half of those whose current 

conviction was for assault (46%) or 

robbery (45%) had multiple prior convictions. An estimated 39% of murderers and 29% of rapists had more than 

one prior conviction. 

Twenty-three percent of those convicted of robbery or assault had five or 

more prior convictions, about twice the 

percentage among murderers (13%) 

and rapists (11%). 

About 3 in 8 violent felons had at least 

one prior conviction for a felony (38%) 

(table 9). This included 43% of robbers, 40% of those convicted of 

assault, and 38% of murderers. Rapists (27%) and those convicted of other 

violent felonies (29%) were less likely 

to have already had a felony conviction. 

Twenty-three percent of violent felons 

had more than one prior conviction for 

a felony, with robbers (27%) about 

twice as likely as rapists (14%) to have 

such a conviction record. Nearly a 

fourth of those convicted of assault 

(23%) or murder (23%) had multiple 

prior felony convictions. Five percent of 

violent felons had been convicted on 

five or more prior felony charges, 

including 7% of robbers.

Fifteen percent of those convicted of a 

violent felony during the current study 

had at least one prior conviction for a 

violent felony (table 10). For 22% of 

violent felons, the most serious prior 

Table 8. Number of prior convictions of violent felons in the 75 largest counties, 

 by most serious current conviction charge, 1990-2002 

Percent of violent felons in the 75 largest counties

With prior conviction

 Number of prior convictions

Most serious current

conviction charge Number Total 

Without prior 

conviction Total 1 2-4 5-9

10 or 

more

All violent felonies 30,569 100% 44% 56% 14% 22% 14% 7%

Murder 1,021 100% 47% 53% 14% 25% 8% 5%

Rape 1,881 100 58 42 13 18 8 3

Robbery 9,433 100 41 59 14 22 15 8

Assault 12,069 100 40 60 14 24 16 7

Other violent 6,165 100 49 51 14 20 11 6

Note: Data on number of prior convictions were available for 93% of all cases. 

Detail may not add to total because of rounding. 

Table 9. Number of prior felony convictions of violent felons in the 75 largest 

counties, by most serious current conviction charge, 1990-2002 

Percent of violent felons in the 75 largest counties

 With prior felony conviction

Number of prior felony convictions

Most serious current 

conviction charge Number Total

Without prior

felony conviction Total 1 2-4 5-9

10 or 

more

All violent felonies 30,677 100% 62% 38% 15% 17% 4% 1%

Murder 1,021 100% 62% 38% 15% 18% 4% 1%

Rape 1,885 100 73 27 12 12 2 --

Robbery 9,458 100 57 43 16 20 6 1

Assault 12,113 100 60 40 17 18 4 1

Other violent 6,201 100 71 29 14 13 2 1

Note: Data on number of prior felony convictions were available for 94% of all cases. 

Detail may not add to total because of rounding.

--Less than 0.5%.

Table 10. Most serious prior conviction of violent felons in the 75 largest 

counties, by most serious current conviction charge, 1990-2002 

Percent of violent felons in the 75 largest counties

 Most serious prior conviction

Most serious current 

conviction charge Number Total

Without prior 

conviction Total

Violent 

felony

Non-violent 

felony

Misdemeanor

All violent felonies 29,979 100% 44% 56% 15% 22% 19%

Murder 976 100% 47% 53% 17% 21% 15%

Rape 1,856 100 58 42 11 15 15

Robbery 9,242 100 41 59 17 26 16

Assault 11,782 100 40 60 17 23 20

Other violent 6,123 100 49 51 10 19 22

Note: Data on most serious prior conviction were available for 94% of all cases. 

Detail may not add to total because of rounding.
6 Violent Felons in Large Urban Counties

conviction was a nonviolent felony, and 

for 19% a misdemeanor.

Pretrial release and detention

An estimated 38% of violent felons 

were released from custody pending 

disposition of the case that resulted in 

their conviction (table 11). Fifty percent 

were held on bail, and 11% were 

denied bail. 

Among violent felons who had a bail 

amount set, about two-thirds were 

released when their bail was set at 

under $5,000, compared to just 4% 

when it was set at $100,000 or more.

About three-fourths (73%) of those 

eventually convicted of murder were 

denied bail or had their bail set at 

$100,000 or more (figure 2). One of 

these conditions was applied to less 

than a fourth of other violent felons. 

As a result of these bail conditions, 

murderers (12%) had the lowest rate of 

pretrial release. About two-fifths of 

those eventually convicted of assault 

(43%) or rape (38%) were released 

prior to case disposition, compared to 

about a fourth (28%) of those eventually convicted of robbery. (See Felony 

Defendants in Large Urban Counties, 

2002 at <http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/

abstract/fdluc02.htm> for more information on pretrial release.)

Pretrial misconduct

About 1 in 4 released violent felons 

committed one or more types of misconduct while in a release status (table 

12). This misconduct usually involved 

a rearrest for a new offense (14%) or a 

failure to appear in court (13%). 

Thirty-five percent of those eventually 

convicted of robbery were charged 

with pretrial misconduct. This included 

24% rearrested for a new offense and 

18% who failed to appear in court. Misconduct rates were next highest for 

Bail amount set

Percent 

released

$100,000 or more 4 %

$50,000-$99,999 15

$25,000-$49,999 21

$10,000-$24,999 37

$5,000-$9,999 48

Under $5,000 66

Table 11. Pretrial release and detention of violent felons in the 75 largest 

counties, by most serious conviction charge, 1990-2002 

Percent of violent felons in the 75 largest counties

Released before 

case disposition

Detained until 

case disposition

Most serious 

conviction charge Number 

Total 

released

Financial 

release

Non-financial releaseTotal 

detained

Held 

on bail

Denied 

bail

All violent felonies 32,021 38% 23% 15% 62% 50% 11%

Murder 1,049 12% 9% 3% 88% 48% 40%

Rape 1,922 38 23 15 62 51 11

Robbery 9,875 28 16 12 72 59 13

Assault 12,705 43 27 16 57 47 10

Other violent 6,470 49 29 20 51 44 6

Note: Data on pretrial release outcome were available for 98% of all cases. 

Detail may not add to total because of rounding.

Violent felons in the 75 largest counties who were denied bail 

or had bail set at $100,000 or more, 1990-2002 

Figure 2 

Bail set at

Denied bail $100,000 or more

Percent of violent felons

Other violent

Assault

Robbery

Rape

Murder

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80%

Most serious

conviction offense

Table 12. Released violent felons in the 75 largest counties committing 

misconduct, by most serious conviction charge, 1990-2002 

Percent of released violent felons in the 75 largest counties

Most serious 

conviction charge Number

Charged with 

any type of

misconduct

Failed to 

appear 

in court

Rearrested 

for new 

offense

All violent felonies 12,249 24% 13% 14%

Murder 122 17% 3% 7%

Rape 735 14 7 6

Robbery 2,767 35 18 24

Assault 5,435 23 13 13

Other violent 3,190 19 11 9

Note: Percentages are based on all released defendants. Types of misconduct included failure to 

appear in court, rearrest for a new offense, or a technical violation of release conditions that 

resulted in the revocation of pretrial release. Detail may add to more than total because defendants may have committed more than one type of misconduct. Data were collected for up to 1 

year. 
Violent Felons in Large Urban Counties 7

those eventually convicted of assault 

(23%). The rate was 17% for murderers and 14% for rapists.

Adjudication

Eighty-eight percent of violent felons 

were convicted through a guilty plea 

and 12% at trial (table 13). About twothirds of trial convictions resulted from 

jury verdicts. The other third occurred 

as bench trials where the verdict was 

determined by a judge.

Murder convictions (41%) were much 

more likely to occur at a trial than convictions for rape (12%), robbery (12%), 

assault (11%), or other violent felonies 

(8%). This was consistent with the 

greater likelihood of murder defendants (44%) going to trial than defendants charged with other violent 

felonies (6%). (See Felony Defendants 

in Large Urban Counties, 2002 at 

<http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/abstract/

fdluc02.htm> for more information on 

the adjudication of felony defendants.) 

At the time of conviction, 59% of violent felons were represented by a public defender, 21% by a private attorney, 

and 20% had legal representation 

assigned by the court (table 14). Murder (44%) and rape (46%) defendants 

were less likely to have a public 

defender than other violent felons 

(60%). Robbery defendants (16%) 

were the least likely to have a private 

attorney. 

Violent felons who pled guilty (60%) 

were more likely to have a public 

defender than those convicted at trial 

(49%) (figure 3). Assigned counsel and 

Table 13. Adjudication method for violent felons in the 75 largest counties, 

by most serious conviction charge, 1990-2002 

Percent of violent felons in the 75 largest counties

Most serious 

conviction charge Number

Trial conviction

Total Guilty plea Total Bench Jury

All violent felonies 32,653 100% 88% 12% 4% 8%

Murder 1,069 100% 59% 41% 3% 38%

Rape 1,979 100 88 12 2 10

Robbery 10,090 100 88 12 4 9

Assault 12,888 100 89 11 5 6

Other violent 6,627 100 92 8 3 5

Note: Data on adjudication method were available for 99.6% of all cases.

Legal representation of violent felons in the 75 largest counties,

at time of conviction, by type of adjudication, 1990-2002

Figure 3

Plea

Trial

0% 20% 40% 60%

Percent of violent felons

Public defender

Assigned counsel

Private attorney

Type of

adjudication

Table 14. Legal representation of violent felons in the 75 largest counties, 

at time of conviction, by most serious conviction charge, 1990-2002 

Percent of violent felons in the 75 largest counties

Most serious 

conviction charge Number Total

Public 

defender

Private 

attorney

Assigned 

counsel Other

All violent felonies 24,289 100% 59% 21% 20% --%

Murder 680 100% 44% 24% 32% 0%

Rape 1,374 100 46 26 28 --

Robbery 6,875 100 60 16 24 --

Assault 10,077 100 60 21 18 --

Other violent 5,324 100 59 26 15 --

Note: Detail may not add to total because of rounding. Data on type of legal 

representation were available for 74% of all cases.

--Less than 0.5%.
8 Violent Felons in Large Urban Counties

private attorneys were each used in 

about a fourth of trials and about a fifth 

of cases involving guilty pleas.

Sentencing

Eighty-one percent of violent felons in 

the 75 largest counties were sentenced to incarceration (table 15). Half 

were sentenced to State prison and 

about a third to a local jail (31%). 

Nearly all murder convictions (96%) 

resulted in a prison sentence. About 

two-thirds of sentences for robbery 

(69%) or rape (62%) convictions were 

to prison and about a fifth were to jail. 

Felony convictions for assault resulted 

in equal percentages of jail and prison 

sentences (38%). 

The mean prison sentence for a violent 

felony conviction was 105 months and 

the median was 60 months (table 16). 

Mean prison sentences ranged from 

about 26 years for murder to about 61⁄2 

years for assault. 

Median prison sentences were 20 

years for murder, 10 years for rape, 5 

years for robbery and 4 years for 

assault and other violent felonies. Two 

percent of violent felons received a life 

sentence including 22% of murderers 

and 4% of those convicted of rape. 

Seventy-five percent of murder sentences were either to a term greater 

than 10 years or to life.

Among the 31% of violent felons who 

received a jail sentence, the mean 

sentence was 8 months and the 

median was 6 months (table 17). 

Table 15. Most severe type of sentence received by convicted felons in the 75 

largest counties, by most serious conviction offense, 1990-2002 

Percent of violent felons in the 75 

largest counties sentenced to —

Most serious 

conviction charge

Incarceration Nonincarceration

Number Total Prison Jail Total Probation Other

All violent felonies 30,892 81% 50% 31% 19% 19% --%

Murder 934 98% 96% 2% 2% 2% 0%

Rape 1,836 83 62 21 17 17 0

Robbery 9,480 89 69 20 11 11 --

Assault 12,364 77 38 38 23 23 --

Other violent 6,280 76 35 41 24 24 1

Note: Data on sentencing outcome were available for 94% of all cases.

--Less than 0.5%.

Table 16. Length of prison sentence received by violent felons in the 75 largest counties, 

by most serious conviction offense, 1990-2002 

Violent felons in the 75 largest counties sentenced to prison 

Most serious 

conviction charge Number

Number of months Percent receiving a maximum sentence length in months of —

Mean Median Total 1-24 25-48 49-72 73-120 Over 120* Life

All violent felonies 15,269 105 mos. 60 mos. 100% 19% 23% 18% 19% 19% 2%

Murder 889 308 mos. 240 mos. 100% 2% 4% 6% 14% 53% 22%

Rape 1,083 152 120 100 6 14 18 29 30 4

Robbery 6,463 100 60 100 14 22 21 21 21 1

Assault 4,679 77 48 100 25 28 18 16 11 1

Other violent 2,157 73 48 100 31 27 18 13 11 1

Note: Data on length of prison sentence were available for 98% of all cases in which a defendant received a prison sentence. 

Eleven percent of prison sentences included a probation term. Detail may not add to total because of rounding.

*Excludes life sentences. 

Table 17. Length of jail sentence received by violent felons in the 75 largest counties, 

by most serious conviction offense, 1990-2002 

Violent felons in the 75 largest counties sentenced to jail

Most serious 

conviction offense

Number of months Percent receiving a maximum sentence in months of —

Number Mean Median Total 3 or less 4-6 7-9 10-12 Over 12

All violent felonies 9,433 8 mos. 6 mos. 100% 28% 29% 10% 29% 4%

Rape 377 8 mos. 6 mos. 100% 17% 35% 11% 37% 0%

Robbery 1,828 11 9 100 13 27 11 42 7

Assault 4,671 7 6 100 32 30 10 24 4

Other violent 2,541 7 6 100 34 29 9 26 2

Note: Data on length of jail sentence were available for 98% of all cases in which a defendant received a jail sentence. Eighty percent of jail sentences included a probation term. Too few murder convictions resulted in a jail sentence to produce reliable estimates. The total for all violent felons includes these murder cases. Detail may not add 

to total because of rounding. 
Violent Felons in Large Urban Counties 9

About a third of all jail sentences were 

for 10 months or longer, including 4% 

for more than 1 year.

Among the 19% of violent felons who 

were sentenced to probation without 

incarceration, 7% received a probation 

term that exceeded 5 years (table 18). 

The mean probation sentence was 42 

months and the median was 36 

months. 

When all sentences are considered, 

including those not involving prison or 

jail, the mean amount of incarceration 

received for violent felony convictions 

in the 75 largest counties was about 23 

years for murderers, about 8 years for 

rapists, and about 6 years for robbers 

(figure 4). For assault convictions, the 

overall mean amount of incarceration 

received was about 3 years, and for 

other violent felonies it was about 21⁄2 

years.

The median amount of incarceration 

received at sentencing was 16 years 

for murderers, 4 years for rapists, and 

about 3 years for robbers. The overall 

median amount of incarceration 

received was less than 1 year for those 

convicted of assault (9 months) or 

other violent felonies (7 months).

Methodology

Sample design

The SCPS sample 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 firststage strata based on court filings. 

The second-stage sampling (filings) 

was designed to represent all defendants who had felony cases filed with 

the court during the selected month. 

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 days 

in May. Data from jurisdictions that 

were not required to provide a full 

month of filings were weighted to represent the full month. (See the individual reports in the Felony Defendants in 

Large Urban Counties series for sampling information specific to each year 

of the data collection <http://www.ojp.

usdoj.gov/bjs/pubalp2.htm#fdluc>.)

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.

Standard errors may be used to construct confidence intervals around any 

percentage. For example, if the standard error for the percentage of violent 

felons sentenced to prison is 1.3%, 

then the 95% confidence interval is 

approximately 50% plus or minus 1.96 

times 1.3% (or 47.4% to 52.6%).

Table 18. Length of probation sentence received by violent felons in the 75 largest 

counties, by most serious conviction offense, 1990-2002 

Violent felons in the 75 largest counties sentenced to probation

Most serious 

conviction offense

Number of months Percent receiving a sentence in months of —

Number Mean Median Total 1-12 13-24 25-48 49-60 Over 60

All violent felonies 5,749 42mos. 36 mos. 100% 15% 22% 32% 24% 7%

Rape 312 59mos. 60mos. 100% 1% 16% 31% 34% 18%

Robbery 1,072 51 60 100 4 14 25 48 9

Assault 2,847 33 30 100 23 26 33 15 4

Other violent 1,496 50 36 100 12 21 36 20 10

Note: Data on length of probation sentence were available for 100% of all cases in which the most 

severe type of sentence a defendant received was probation. Twenty-four percent of probation 

sentences also included a fine. Too few murder convictions resulted in a probation sentence to produce reliable estimates. The total for all violent felons includes these murder cases. Detail may not 

add to total because of rounding.

Mean and median number of months sentenced to incarceration for violent 

felons in the 75 largest counties, 1990-2002 

Figure 4

Other violent

Assault

Robbery

Rape

Murder

0 50 100 150 200 250 300

Number of months

Most serious conviction offense

Note: Includes all sentenced violent felons with a value of zero assigned to those

receiving a sentence that did not include incarceration.

Mean

Median
10 Violent Felons in Large Urban Counties

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 the violent category; 

however, these lists are not meant to 

be exhaustive. All offenses, except for 

murder, include attempts and conspiracies to commit. 

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, carjacking, 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. 

Appendix Table A. Participating jurisdictions, State Court Processing Statistics, 

1990-2002 

County (State) 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002

Jefferson (AL) XXXXX

Maricopa (AZ) X X X X X X X

Pima (AZ) X X X X X

Alameda (CA) XXXXX

Contra Costa (CA) X X

Los Angeles (CA) XXXXXXX

Orange (CA) X XXXX

Riverside (CA) X X

Sacramento (CA) X X X X X

San Bernardino (CA) X X X X X X X

San Diego (CA) X X X X

San Francisco (CA) X X X X

San Mateo (CA) X X

Santa Clara (CA) X X X X X X X

Ventura (CA) X X X

New Haven (CT) X

Washington (DC) X X

Broward (FL) X X X X X X X

Duval (FL) X X

Miami-Dade (FL) XXXXXXX

Hillsborough (FL) X X X X X

Orange (FL) X X X

Palm Beach (FL) X X X X

Pinellas (FL) X X X X

Fulton (GA) X X X X X

Honolulu (HI) X X X X X

Cook (IL) X X X X X X X

DuPage (IL) X X X

Marion (IN) X X X X

Jefferson (KY) X X X

Essex (MA) X X

Middlesex (MA) X

Suffolk (MA) X X

Baltimore (MD) X X

Baltimore (city) (MD) X X X

Montgomery (MD) X X X X

Macomb (MI) X X

Wayne (MI) X X X X X X X

Jackson (MO) X X X

St. Louis (MO) XXXXX

Essex (NJ) X X X X X

Bronx (NY) X X X X X X X

Erie (NY) X X X X X

Kings (NY) X X X X X X X

Monroe (NY) X X X X X

Nassau (NY) X X

New York (NY) X X X X X

Queens (NY) XXXXX

Suffolk (NY) X X X

Westchester (NY) X X

Franklin (OH) X X

Hamilton (OH) X X X X X

Allegheny (PA) XXXXX

Montgomery (PA) X X X

Philadelphia (PA) X X X X X X X

Shelby (TN) X X X X X X X

Dallas (TX) X X X X X X X

El Paso (TX) X X

Harris (TX) X X X X X X X

Tarrant (TX) X X X X

Travis (TX) X X

Salt Lake (UT) X X X X

Fairfax (VA) X X X X

King (WA) X X X X X

Milwaukee (WI) X X X X
Violent Felons in Large Urban Counties 11
U.S. Department of Justice

Office of Justice Programs

Bureau of Justice Statistics

Washington, DC 20531

Official Business

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12 Violent Felons in Large Urban Counties

This report in portable document 

format and in ASCII and its related 

statistical data and tables are 

available at the BJS World Wide 

Web Internet site: <http://

www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/abstract/

vfluc02.htm>

Office of Justice Programs

Partnerships for Safer 

Communities

http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov

The Bureau of Justice Statistics is 

the statistical agency of the U.S. 

Department of Justice. Jeffrey L. 

Sedgwick is director.

This Special Report was written by 

Brian Reaves. Thomas A. Cohen 

verified the report. Carolyn C. 

Williams produced and edited the 

report. Jayne Robinson prepared 

the report for final printing.

July 2006, NCJ 205289