RT Article
T1 Race, Ethnicity, and Trial Avoidance: A Multilevel Analysis
JF Criminal justice policy review
VO 31
IS 3
SP 422
OP 451
A1 Lee, Jacqueline G.
A2 Richardson, Rebecca L.
LA English
YR 2020
UL https://krimdok.uni-tuebingen.de/Record/1774619083
AB Minority criminal defendants are more likely than White defendants to exercise their right to trial, which is concerning given that research also consistently finds trial sentences to be harsher than those obtained via pleas. However, guilty pleas are not the only disposition available for avoiding a trial; pretrial diversions and case dismissals also serve as mechanisms for trial avoidance. Using hierarchical linear modeling, we find that Black criminal defendants are more likely than Whites to go to trial rather than receive other case disposition. Relationships for Hispanic defendants are less consistent. Fewer county-level effects emerge than expected, providing little to no support for racial threat theory. Results suggest that Black defendants are less often able or willing to avoid a trial, a finding which highlights and perhaps helps to explain racial disparities in final sentencing outcomes.
K1 Criminal Court
K1 Criminal Trial
K1 Ethnicity
K1 Racial threat
K1 Sentencing disparity
DO 10.1177/088740341881299