TY - JOUR
T1 - Do you get what you pay for? Type of counsel and its effect on criminal court outcomes
AU - Hartley, Richard D.
AU - Miller, Holly Ventura
AU - Spohn, Cassia
PY - 2010/9
Y1 - 2010/9
N2 - Although the Sixth Amendment of the constitution guarantees assistance of counsel to indigent criminal defendants, questions exist about the quality of this representation. Critics assert that 'you get what you pay for' and that public defenders are less effective than privately retained counsel regarding criminal justice outcomes. Some research, however, reveals that public defenders are as effective as privately retained counsel because of their working relationships with prosecutors and judges, the so-called courtroom workgroup. The current study tested the assertion that 'you get what you pay for' by examining the effect of type of counsel (public defenders versus private attorneys) on four different case processing outcomes for a large mid-western jurisdiction. Results generally show that type of counsel has no significant direct effect. Tests for interaction, however, suggest that for some defendants, type of counsel interacts with other key variables to influence certain outcomes.
AB - Although the Sixth Amendment of the constitution guarantees assistance of counsel to indigent criminal defendants, questions exist about the quality of this representation. Critics assert that 'you get what you pay for' and that public defenders are less effective than privately retained counsel regarding criminal justice outcomes. Some research, however, reveals that public defenders are as effective as privately retained counsel because of their working relationships with prosecutors and judges, the so-called courtroom workgroup. The current study tested the assertion that 'you get what you pay for' by examining the effect of type of counsel (public defenders versus private attorneys) on four different case processing outcomes for a large mid-western jurisdiction. Results generally show that type of counsel has no significant direct effect. Tests for interaction, however, suggest that for some defendants, type of counsel interacts with other key variables to influence certain outcomes.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=77957024924&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=77957024924&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.jcrimjus.2010.07.009
DO - 10.1016/j.jcrimjus.2010.07.009
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:77957024924
SN - 0047-2352
VL - 38
SP - 1063
EP - 1070
JO - Journal of Criminal Justice
JF - Journal of Criminal Justice
IS - 5
ER -