Examining Case Dismissal and Re-Offense Rates in Deferred Prosecution Programs

Background and Purpose: Deferred prosecution programs divert people charged with certain offenses from traditional court proceedings if they participate in pre-indictment requirements in return for dismissal or expungement of their charge(s). This type of diversion allows for individuals to avoid deeper involvement in the criminal justice system and the many consequences of having a criminal record. Because of their perceived utility in lessening the volume and cost of cases being handled by overburdened court systems, deferred prosecution programs are beginning to be implemented in progressive prosecutor’s offices. However, there is limited research on the volume of cases handled by existing programs and their effect on case dismissal and reduced future contact with the criminal justice system.

Methods: As part of a mixed methods exploration of prosecutor-led diversion programs, the research team analyzed administrative data from three deferred prosecution programs in two large urban Midwestern counties. The three programs vary are described as follows: Felony DPP (N=2592): A deferred prosecution program for non-violent felony charges; Diversion (N=1392): A pre-charge program for misdemeanant who are determined to be low-risk for recidivism; and Deferred Prosecution Agreement (DPA; N=3383): A deferred prosecution program for persons charged with either misdemeanor or felony charges who are determined to be at moderate risk for recidivism. For each program, chi-square tests of independence and binomial logistic regression were performed to examine the relation between demographic variables (i.e. gender, race) and offense type (i.e. drug, property, burglary, theft) and program completion. We also examined the relationship between program completion and recidivism for participants in two of the three programs.

Results: Successful completion and case dismissal rates for the three programs: Felony DPP: 78.1%; Diversion: 77.2%; and DPA: 61.8%. For Felony DPP, after controlling for race and offense type, females were more likely to complete the program compared to males (OR=1.62, p<.001). For Diversion, after controlling for race, males were more likely to complete the program (OR=1.42, P<.01), and re-offense rates were significantly lower for participants who completed the program (11.3%) versus those that did not successfully complete (26%). Similar results were found in DPA, where 18.9% of completers reoffended compared to 36.6% of non-completers. For DPA, completion rates were significantly higher for African Americans (63.2%) compared to Hispanics (58.7%) and Whites (61.2%; X²=23.8, p <.01).

Conclusions and Implications: These three deferred prosecution programs yielded high numbers of participants with quite promising completion and case dismissal rates. Findings were mixed across the three programs as to the effects of race and gender on program completion, but the consistent finding of program completion resulting in lower re-offense rates demonstrates that deferred prosecution programs hold promise in diverting participants from the criminal justice system beyond their current charge. Programmatic enhancements and research are needed to facilitate even high rates of completion in deferred prosecution programs, as well as to target participant demographics with lower completion rates for enhanced intervention. These findings indicate that deferred prosecution programs hold real promise for advancing the goals of smart decarceration.