RT Book
T1 What Happens When Investigating A Crime Takes Up Too Much Time? An Examination of How Optimal Law Enforcement Theory Impacts Sentencing
A1 D. Bales, William
A2 Ray, Katherine
A2 Leal, Wanda
A2 L. Borkowski, Elizabeth
LA English
YR 2017
UL https://krimdok.uni-tuebingen.de/Record/1866148516
AB Previous research finds that variations in sentencing outcomes still exist among similarly situated individuals, especially among drug offenders. While courtroom actors are often the focus of sentencing disparities, law enforcement officers are rarely studied. This is problematic because criminological research has yet to explore whether law enforcement could influence sentencing decisions. The current study aims to discover the influence of a previously ignored legal variable, investigation workload, on sentence length and directly examine an untested criminal justice theory, Optimal Law Enforcement Theory. This study will explore these overlooked concepts with a rare dataset that contains information on individuals convicted of prescription drug trafficking in Florida from 2011-2013. We find that investigation workload does influence sentencing, with offenders convicted from a high police workload being significantly more likely to experience longer sentences than offenders convicted from a low investigation workload. Limitations and policy implications are also discussed