Low-Level,but High Speed?: Assessing Pretrial Detention Effects on the Timing and Content of Misdemeanor versus Felony Guilty Pleas

Abstract

While numerous studies have examined pretrial detention and felony case outcomes, little empirical attention has been devoted to misdemeanor pretrial detention. We theorize that misdemeanants detained for a longer proportion of time will plead guilty quicker because the costs of fighting their charges in jail often outweigh the sanctions they face. Utilizing data on 165,630 felony and misdemeanor cases from Miami-Dade County, Florida, during a 4-year period (2012–2015) we assess whether the effects of pretrial detention length on the timing and content of guilty pleas differ across lower-level and upper-level courts. Survival analyses and multinomial logistic regressions indicate that misdemeanor cases overall and those involving lengthier pretrial detention are resolved faster, with most resulting in non-carceral sanctions such as credit for time served (CTS). Given that misdemeanors make-up the bulk of U.S. criminal cases, these findings reveal important insights about how pretrial detention impacts case-processing dynamics in lower courts.     

No Offense! On the Offense Principle and Some New Challenges

A central aim within criminal justice ethics is to give a plausible justification concerning which type of acts ought to be criminalized by the state. One of the principles of criminalization which has been presented and critically discussed in the philosophical literature is the Offense Principle. The primary aim of this paper is to argue that unless a rather special and implausible objective list theory of well-being is accepted, the Offense Principle should be subsumed in the Harm Principle.     

Contracting out local road and park services: economic effects and their strategic,contractual and competitive conditions

ABSTRACT

The economic rationale for contracting out local services is increasingly contested by empirical research. This article aims to contribute to this literature, first by scrutinising the economic effects of contracting out in local road and park services and, second, by exploring how characteristics such as markets, contracts, municipal strategies and contracting history influence these outcomes. Drawing on original survey data from Danish municipalities, we find that competitive tendering has on average reduced costs. Further analysis shows that savings are not associated with lower quality, thus indicating that ‘quality shading’ was not taking place. Another finding is that municipalities that repeatedly contract the services experience smaller savings, suggesting that competitive tendering is subject to declining marginal returns. Finally, we find that larger municipalities and those emphasising expenditure cuts realise larger savings, whereas the characteristics of markets and contracts do not seem to explain variations in cost savings.     

Turned on,Turned off: On Timely and Untimely Feminist Knowledge Production

Through cacophonic story-telling, emerging from ethnographic observations from academic scenes in Australia and elsewhere, the article seeks to explore the timeliness and untimeliness of feminist knowledge production. Rather than arguing a particular point or making a claim for a particular position, it attempts to sense into the lived experience of being subject to, and of, turns in social theory. As a whole the paper seeks to work with and allow for multiplicity in tone, focus, researcher positioning, reader positioning, and more, to see what knowledge that does not seek confident closure can be.     

Effect of integrated treatment on the use of coercive measures in first-episode schizophrenia-spectrum disorder. A randomized clinical trial

The effect of integrated treatment on the use of coercive measures in first-episode schizophrenia-spectrum disorder in Denmark is not known. A total of 328 patients were randomly assigned to integrated treatment (167 patients) or standard treatment (161 patients). Integrated treatment consisted of assertive community treatment, psycho-educational multi-family groups, and social skills training. Data on coercion were extracted from the register from the National Board of Health, and data on continuity from medical records. Even though the level of continuity seemed higher in integrated treatment, this did not reduce the use of coercive measures compared to the use in standard treatment.     

Attitudes towards European Integration and the Danish Common Market Referendum

The article analyses survey data on the role played by the issue of European integration in the Danish Common Market referendum 1972. Despite a 2:1 vote in favor of membership, support for supranational European integration was low; in fact, integration as an issue was considerably more salient to opponents of membership than supporters who tended to vote mainly for tangible, i.e. economic reasons. As many as one-fourth of the sample voted for membership though being highly anti-integrationist, either because of disbelief in the dynamics of integration, because of the higher saliency of tangible benefits, or because of identification with strongly pro-market parties.     

A self-report measure of pubertal status: Reliability,validity, and initial norms

Puberty is a central process in the complex set of changes that constitutes the transition from childhood to adolescence. Research on the role of pubertal change in this transition has been impeded by the difficulty of assessing puberty in ways acceptable to young adolescents and others involved. Addressing this problem, this paper describes and presents norms for a selfreport measure of pubertal status. The measure was used twice annually over a period of three years in a longitudinal study of 335 young adolescent boys and girls. Data on a longitudinal subsample of 253 subjects are reported. The scale shows good reliability, as indicated by coefficient alpha. In addition, several sources of data suggest that these reports are valid. The availability of such a measure is important for studies, such as those based in schools, in which more direct measures of puberty may not be possible.This research was supported by a grant to A.C.P. from the National Institutes of Mental Health (MH 38052/38142).She earned the Ph.D. in Measurement, Evaluation, and Statistical Analysis at the University of Chicago. Her research interests focus on biopsychosocial development in adolescence.She earned the Ph.D. in Human Development at the University of Chicago. Her research interests focus on social development and gender roles.She earned the Ph.D. in Human Development at the University of Chicago. Her research interests focus on adolescent development and gender issues.His research interests focus on parent-adolescent relationships.