NCJ Number
194750
Date Published
2001
Length
601 pages
Annotation
This document provides caseload information for every court in Indiana for the year 2000.
Abstract
More cases were filed in courts of record in Indiana in 2000 than in any previous year. A decline in the number of infraction, ordinance violation, and misdemeanor filings in the city and town courts resulted in a reduction in the total number of cases filed in the State. The 1,679,153 new cases filed indicate an increase of 25 percent over a 10 year period. The highest rate of increase occurred in Mental Health cases, which increased by 15 percent from 1999. Increases were also evident in Felonies, Misdemeanors, Miscellaneous Criminal, Infractions, Ordinance Violations, CHINS, Juvenile Status, Paternity, Civil Plenary, Tort, Domestic Relations, Protective Order, Civil Miscellaneous and Adoption cases. Decreases in Class D Felony, Delinquency, Paternity, Juvenile Miscellaneous, Estates, Guardianships, Trusts, and Reciprocal Support cases were also reflected in the court statistics. The largest number of cases was Infractions, with nearly half a million cases. Distantly following Infractions were Small Claims and Misdemeanors. All courts disposed of 1,638,817 cases. Trial courts of record disposed of 1,270,558 cases. The most frequent method of case disposition was by Guilty Plea/Admission, with 30 percent of all cases being disposed in this manner. Defaults accounted for 10 percent of all case dispositions. Bench trials accounted for 7 percent and jury trials accounted for less than 1 percent of all case dispositions. In the court of record, jury trials accounted for less than 1 percent of all types of dispositions. More cases were also filed in the city and town courts in 2000 than in 1999. The caseload of the city and town courts consisted predominantly of traffic infractions, some misdemeanors, and ordinance violations. The most significant increase occurred in infractions.