Attorney type predicts outcomes more strongly than race does

Evidence

The study suggests that the ability to hire a private attorney minimizes one’s chance of pretrial detention and custodial sentence outcomes. Black and Hispanic defendants were much less likely to be represented by private counsel and much more likely to be represented by court-assigned defense attorneys (commonly known as 18(b) counsel), with the former showing the most favorable and the latter the least favorable outcomes for defendants. These findings become especially relevant if we consider that “defense attorney type” trumped “race/ethnicity” as a predictive factor in pretrial detention, sentence offers, and sentence outcomes. — Joseph Avery, Jim Sidanius, Joel Cooper, Gregory Davis, Amanda N., Bias in the Law, 569 (#corroborates, via linked claim)

For example, it has been shown that race and gender of the death row inmates matter regarding which defendants gets their sentence commuted to a life term, and which ones get executed (Argys & Mocan, 2004). Arnold, Dobbie, and Yang (2018) found that bail judges are biased against Black defendants. Rehavi and Starr (2014) reported that Blacks received longer sentences than Whites, all else being equal. Mustard (2001) analyzed federal offenders and found that Black and male defendants received longer sentences. Starr (2015) reported substantial gender disparities in sentence lengths in favor of females in federal criminal cases. Schanzenbach (2005) analyzed case outcomes of offenders sentenced under federal sentencing guidelines, finding that all else equal female defendants received shorter sentences, while the opposite was true for Blacks and Hispanics. — Joseph Avery, Jim Sidanius, Joel Cooper, Gregory Davis, Amanda N., Bias in the Law, 743 (#complicates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Limited attorney quality inflates conviction rates and sentences for minorities; Defendants’ race reliably predicts negative case outcomes; Attorney type outweighs race in predicting detention and sentencing outcomes — Joseph Avery, Jim Sidanius, Joel Cooper, Gregory Davis, Amanda N., Bias in the Law: A Definitive Look at…, 569 (+8 more)

Broader Connections

• Attorney type outweighs race in predicting detention and sentencing outcomes #corroborates (0.97) — Joseph Avery, Jim Sidanius, Joel Cooper, Gregory Davis, Amanda N., Bias in the Law, 569
• Measured case outcomes show race and gender bias across multiple court settings. #complicates (0.76) — Joseph Avery, Jim Sidanius, Joel Cooper, Gregory Davis, Amanda N., Bias in the Law, 743
• Race and gender of defendants causally affect judicial outcomes #complicates (0.75)
• Race pairing predicts death sentences even after controlling for legal factors #complicates (0.75) — Joseph Avery, Jim Sidanius, Joel Cooper, Gregory Davis, Amanda N., Bias in the Law, 72
• Judicial race and gender affect case outcomes, making bench diversity a remedy for bias #complicates (0.73) — Joseph Avery, Jim Sidanius, Joel Cooper, Gregory Davis, Amanda N., Bias in the Law, 33
• Judges’ race, gender, and politics measurably shift their case outcomes #complicates (0.72) — Joseph Avery, Jim Sidanius, Joel Cooper, Gregory Davis, Amanda N., Bias in the Law, 750