NCJ Number
142014
Date Published
1992
Length
227 pages
Annotation
The authors studied 9 felony courts in both similar and dissimilar communities in Illinois, Michigan, and Pennsylvania and talked with more than 300 judges, prosecutors, and defense attorneys about the dynamics of the American criminal court system.
Abstract
Criminal justice structures and processes in the nine courts reflected relationships between community residents and emerged from interactions of courtroom participants. Characteristics of these relationships (status, influence, and dominance) were shaped by local politics; court histories; disputes and competing ideas, and actions of prosecutors, judges, and defense attorneys. Legal pluralism evolved through the adaptive behavior of attorneys and judges within the diverse institutional relationships of court communities. The courtroom "craft" of prosecutors and defense attorneys varied greatly with the particular mix of policies prevailing in the court community. Both prosecutors and defense attorneys in all nine communities, however, shared a common concern for their professional reputations. The bind for prosecutors in establishing credible working relations with judges and defense attorneys was that they were employees and representatives of the chief prosecutor. Defense attorneys largely accepted the circumstances they faced in the courtroom. Their craft was shaped by concerns over efficiency, adherence to professional norms, minimizing any regrets for their actions, and being effective. The guilty plea work of attorneys differed according to the mix of court and prosecutor policies. The craft of judges was influenced by court calendaring, docketing, and assignment policies. Appendixes provide information on the characteristics of the nine courts and a list of publications based on the nine-court project. References, tables, and figures