Gerard A. Rainville, Brian A. Reaves, Ph.D., Bureau of Justice Statistics

December 1, 2003    NCJ 202021

Presents data collected from a representative sample of felony cases filed in 40 of the Nation's 75 largest counties during May 2000. The cases are tracked for up to one year to provide a complete overview of the processing of felony defendants. Data collected includes current arrest charges, demographic characteristics, prior arrests and convictions, criminal justice status at arrest, type of pretrial release or detention, bail amount, court appearance record, adjudication outcome, and sentence received if convicted. This periodic report is published every two years.

Highlights:

• Since 1990, the proportion of defendants charged with a violent offense has remained at about a fourth.
• Thirty-eight percent of all defendants were detained until court disposed of their case, including 7% who were denied bail.
• At the time of arrest, 35% of defendants had an active criminal justice status such as probation (14%), release pending disposition of a prior case (13%) or parole (6%).

Part of the Felony Defendants in Large Urban Counties Series

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