Police Perceptions of Influence - A Study in the Criminal Case Disposition Process

• NCJ Number: 83481
• Journal: Law and Policy Quarterly Volume: 3 Issue: 1 Dated: (January 1981) Pages: 95-119
• Author(s): W A Kerstetter
• Date Published: 1981
• Length: 25 pages
• Sponsoring Agency: University of Chicago; University of Illinois, Chicago Circle; US Dept of Justice; Day Foundation of Memphis; US Dept of Justice NIJ Pub
• Publication Format: Article
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

Based on data from a court reform project which involved police in plea bargaining negotiations, this analysis concluded that officers participating in these conferences significantly improved their perceptions of their own influence in the court process.

Abstract

Police often have negative feelings toward the judicial process, particularly plea bargaining. Data about police perceptions were collected in a field experiment in Dade County, Fla. which assigned 378 out of 1,073 randomly selected cases to a pretrial settlement procedure involving plea discussions by judge, victim, defendant, and police and the remainder to a control group. Interviews with police showed they perceived judges and attorneys as the most influential parties, victim and defendant next, and themselves as least influential. However, pretrial conference attendance enhanced police officers' perceptions of their influence. Factors which could affect their views were also explored, such as years of service, type of crime, race, attitudes toward the case disposition process, and fairness of the disposition. This analysis revealed that attendance at the conference significantly improved the perceptions of the 4-11 year veterans, a group that earlier studies have indicated suffer from cynical attitudes toward their role. Positive police attitudes toward the disposition process and fairness were associated with enhanced perception of influence for themselves, prosecutors, and victims and decreased influence for defense attorneys. Many judges and attorneys saw a public relations benefit and educative function in police participation, while observers agreed that police presence affected the distribution of influence in the conference. Arguments that a police presence impedes reasonable settlements are discounted by the finding that their participation did not affect the percentage of cases settled or severity of sentences imposed. Tables, nine footnotes, and six references are included.