NCJ Number
80241
Date Published
1977
Length
140 pages
Annotation
Judicial use of detention is studied by examining the records of 189 cases involving detention in Mannheim, West Germany, in 1971.
Abstract
The study objective was to compare actual practice with the theoretical mandate of the 1965 law restricting detention for minor offenses to a minimum. The number of detention orders issued by nine specific judges was ascertained, and the subsequent processing and final court decision in each jailed defendant's case was traced. The judges were found to display discrepancies between their detention practices and the intent of the law. An eight-item questionnaire was submitted to the judges, eliciting their attitudes and opinions on the study findings; of the nine judges, two declined to respond. The analysis of case records was done in terms of offense type, reason for detention, personal circumstances and attitude of the defendant, and restitutional fulfillment of sentence. The records revealed that in most cases judges signed detention orders in a perfunctory manner upon recommendation of the arresting officer. As many as 12 such orders were sometimes issued in the course of a 2-hour hearing. Any individual consideration occurred only when formal objections were raised for a review of the detention order. Indigent, homeless, and foreign defendants were most frequently detained. The judges' questionnaire responses frankly acknowledged the practice of stereotyping defendants on the grounds of their experience. They felt that detention is often justified in the public interest even though it conflicts with an individual's right to liberty as protected by law. Extensive tables are provided. Study instruments are appended. Footnotes and about 19 references are given.