Early Intervention by Counsel: A Multi-Site Evaluation of the Presence of Counsel at Defendants' First Appearance (CAFA) in Court, 6 New York State counties, 2012-2016 (ICPSR 37370)
Version Date: Nov 30, 2020 View help for published
Principal Investigator(s): View help for Principal Investigator(s)
Alissa Pollitz Worden, State University of New York at Albany;
Andrew L.B. Davies, New York. Office of Indigent Legal Services
https://doi.org/10.3886/ICPSR37370.v1
Version V1
Summary View help for Summary
This study sought to assess the impact of local programs that ensure that legal counsel is provided at first appearance (usually arraignment) in court on court decisions (such as bail or pretrial release, and consequences such as pretrial detention and booking at a local detention facility), as well as on subsequent consequences for charge reduction, disposition, and sentencing. The project collected original data from six upstate New York counties (under pseudonyms). The data were collected from indigent defense programs' case files, supplemented by data from county detention facilities on booking and release.
Demographic variables in this collection include defendant age, race, gender, and residency.
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Subject Terms View help for Subject Terms
Geographic Coverage View help for Geographic Coverage
Smallest Geographic Unit View help for Smallest Geographic Unit
County
Restrictions View help for Restrictions
Access to these data is restricted. Users interested in obtaining these data must complete a Restricted Data Use Agreement, specify the reasons for the request, and obtain IRB approval or notice of exemption for their research.
Distributor(s) View help for Distributor(s)
Time Period(s) View help for Time Period(s)
Date of Collection View help for Date of Collection
Study Purpose View help for Study Purpose
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the implementation of counsel at defendants' first appearance (CAFA) in court in six upstate New York counties.
Study Design View help for Study Design
The study used a quasi-experimental design based on investigation of community change efforts targeting a common objective across multiple settings, allowing for comparison of case patterns prior to and one year after CAFA program implementation.
Sample View help for Sample
In each of the six counties, cases were sampled at three time periods: (1) immediately before the implementation of CAFA programs; (2) immediately after the implementation; and (3) one year after CAFA had been implemented. All cases within the span of months (which varied by county) were initially included. Subsequently cases were excluded if they (1) involved a highest charge that was a violation level offense (not a criminal offense); (2) involved defendants who were found ineligible for services; (3) involved defendants who retained private counsel before their cases were completed; and (4) involved defendants whose cases did not end in a disposition recorded in the indigent defense program's records.
Time Method View help for Time Method
Universe View help for Universe
Defendants in upstate New York counties who were arrested and charged with misdemeanor or felony offenses, and who were represented in court by their county's indigent defense program attorneys.
Unit(s) of Observation View help for Unit(s) of Observation
Data Type(s) View help for Data Type(s)
Mode of Data Collection View help for Mode of Data Collection
Description of Variables View help for Description of Variables
Variables include defendant demographics such as age, gender, and race, as well as case details such as charge, outcome, and weeks to disposition.
Response Rates View help for Response Rates
Not applicable
Presence of Common Scales View help for Presence of Common Scales
None
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One or more files in this data collection have special restrictions. Restricted data files are not available for direct download from the website; click on the Restricted Data button to learn more.
This dataset is maintained and distributed by the National Archive of Criminal Justice Data (NACJD), the criminal justice archive within ICPSR. NACJD is primarily sponsored by three agencies within the U.S. Department of Justice: the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the National Institute of Justice, and the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.