NCJ Number
101084
Journal
Law and Society Review Volume: 19 Issue: 4 Dated: (1985) Pages: 587-621
Date Published
1985
Length
35 pages
Annotation
This paper examines the cases of 1017 homicide defendants in Florida. Two main data sources are used: the police department's classification of the case as found in the FBI's Supplemental Homicide Reports, and the prosecutor's classification, as determined by court records.
Abstract
Each data set characterizes the homicide as involving felonious circumstances, or nonfelonious circumstances. Attention is focused on cases that differ in their police and prosecutorial classifications. Results indicate that differences in these classifications are related to defendant's and victim's race, with blacks accused of killing whites the most likely to be ''upgraded' and the least likely to be ''downgraded.' The process of upgrading is then shown to significantly increase the likelihood of the imposition of a death sentence in cases with white victims where no plea bargain is offered. (Publisher abstract.)