Abstract
Although the criminal justice system has undergone reform to eliminate sexual assault case attrition and to improve the overall treatment of sexual assault victims, few studies have examined the effect of these reforms. In this study, the authors examine prosecutorial charging decisions across two unique jurisdictions: Kansas City, Missouri, which utilizes a specialized unit for sexual assault cases, and Miami, Florida, which does not use a specialized unit to determine the effect of prosecutorial specialization on case outcomes. The findings of the study reveal that, despite differences in departmental policies and rates of plea bargaining and trials, prosecutors’ charging decisions and the predictors of charging are similar in the two jurisdictions. The authors conclude that, regardless of whether decisions are made in a specialized unit or not, victim credibility is a real “focal concern” of the prosecutor in sexual assault cases.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 461-498 |
| Number of pages | 38 |
| Journal | Criminal Justice Policy Review |
| Volume | 16 |
| Issue number | 4 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2005 |
| Externally published | Yes |
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Keywords
- charging
- prosecution
- sexual assault
- specialized unit
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Law
Cite this
Prosecutorial Charging Decisions in Sexual Assault Cases : Examining the Impact of a Specialized Prosecution Unit. / Beichner, Dawn; Spohn, Cassia.
In: Criminal Justice Policy Review, Vol. 16, No. 4, 2005, p. 461-498.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Prosecutorial Charging Decisions in Sexual Assault Cases
T2 - Examining the Impact of a Specialized Prosecution Unit
AU - Beichner, Dawn
AU - Spohn, Cassia
PY - 2005
Y1 - 2005
N2 - Although the criminal justice system has undergone reform to eliminate sexual assault case attrition and to improve the overall treatment of sexual assault victims, few studies have examined the effect of these reforms. In this study, the authors examine prosecutorial charging decisions across two unique jurisdictions: Kansas City, Missouri, which utilizes a specialized unit for sexual assault cases, and Miami, Florida, which does not use a specialized unit to determine the effect of prosecutorial specialization on case outcomes. The findings of the study reveal that, despite differences in departmental policies and rates of plea bargaining and trials, prosecutors’ charging decisions and the predictors of charging are similar in the two jurisdictions. The authors conclude that, regardless of whether decisions are made in a specialized unit or not, victim credibility is a real “focal concern” of the prosecutor in sexual assault cases.
AB - Although the criminal justice system has undergone reform to eliminate sexual assault case attrition and to improve the overall treatment of sexual assault victims, few studies have examined the effect of these reforms. In this study, the authors examine prosecutorial charging decisions across two unique jurisdictions: Kansas City, Missouri, which utilizes a specialized unit for sexual assault cases, and Miami, Florida, which does not use a specialized unit to determine the effect of prosecutorial specialization on case outcomes. The findings of the study reveal that, despite differences in departmental policies and rates of plea bargaining and trials, prosecutors’ charging decisions and the predictors of charging are similar in the two jurisdictions. The authors conclude that, regardless of whether decisions are made in a specialized unit or not, victim credibility is a real “focal concern” of the prosecutor in sexual assault cases.
KW - charging
KW - prosecution
KW - sexual assault
KW - specialized unit
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84992885878&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84992885878&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1177/0887403405277195
DO - 10.1177/0887403405277195
M3 - Article
VL - 16
SP - 461
EP - 498
JO - Criminal Justice Policy Review
JF - Criminal Justice Policy Review
SN - 0887-4034
IS - 4
ER -