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Curated

Alternative Procedures for Reducing Delays in Criminal Appeals: Sacramento, Springfield, and Rhode Island, 1983-1984 (ICPSR 9965)

Released/updated on: 1994-02-17

Geographic coverage: Rhode Island, Sacramento, United States, Illinois, Springfield, California

Time period: 1983-01-01--1984-01-01

This data collection investigates the effectiveness of alternative approaches to reducing delays in criminal appeals. Interviews were conducted with court representatives from districts employing differing alternatives. These districts and approaches are (1) case management in the Illinois Appellate Court, Fourth District, in Springfield, (2) staff screening for submission without oral argument in the California Court of Appeals, Third District, in Sacramento, and (3) fast-tracking procedures in the Rhode Island Supreme Court. Parallel interviews were conducted in public defenders' offices in three additional locations: Colorado, the District of Columbia, and Minnesota. Questions focused on the backlogs courts were facing, the reasons for the backlogs, and the consequences. Participants were asked about the fairness and possible consequences of procedures employed by their courts and other courts in this study. Case data were acquired from court records of the Springfield, Sacramento, and Rhode Island courts.

Curated

Impact of Prisoner Litigation Reform, 1992-2000 [United States] (ICPSR 20354)

Released/updated on: 2008-04-10

Geographic coverage: United States

Time period: 1992-04-01--2000-12-01

In 1996, the United States Congress enacted two policies to regulate the use of the legal system by state prisoners. They were the Prisoner Litigation Reform Act (PLRA) and the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act (AEDPA). The purpose of this research project was to examine whether the PLRA and the AEDPA had their intended effects of reducing the number of Section 1983 lawsuits and habeas corpus petitions, respectively, at both the national and circuit court levels. The researchers obtained data, from the Research and Statistics Division of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts, on the number of civil rights suits and the number of habeas corpus petitions filed by state prisoners in district courts from April 1992 to December 2000. These data were organized into monthly increments. Dataset 1, Civil Rights Suits Filed, contains 105 cases, and Dataset 2, Habeas Corpus Petitions Filed, also contains 105 cases. The trends in civil rights suits filed (Dataset 1) and habeas corpus petitions filed (Dataset 2) were measured by the number of petitions filed per 10,000 state prisoners. Filing rates were measured at the level of district courts, grouped together by the circuit court that has jurisdiction over them.

Variables in Dataset 1, Civil Rights Suits Filed, include filing date and the number of civil rights suits filed per 10,000 state prisoners at the national level as well as for district courts within each of the 11 circuits and the District of Columbia. An intervention flag variable is also included. Variables in Dataset 2, Habeas Corpus Petitions Filed, include filing date and the number of habeas corpus petitions filed per 10,000 state prisoners at the national level, as well as for district courts within each of the 11 circuits and the District of Columbia. A pulse flag variable and two intervention flag variables are also included.

Curated

Restricted

Understanding Court Culture and Improving Court Performance in 12 Courts in California, Florida, and Minnesota, 2002 (ICPSR 20366)

Released/updated on: 2008-08-25

Geographic coverage: United States, Minnesota, California, Florida

Time period: 2002-04-01--2002-08-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the organizational culture in 12 felony criminal trial courts selected in 3 states and to gauge prosecuting and public defender attorneys' views on how well the courts in which they practice achieve the goals of access, fairness, and managerial effectiveness. Data on organizational culture in each of the 12 courts (Part 1) were obtained by administering the Court Culture Assessment Instrument (CCAI) to all judges with a felony criminal court docket and to all senior court administrators. A total of 224 respondents completed the questionnaire. Additionally, surveys were conducted of prosecuting attorneys (Part 2) and public defender attorneys (Part 3) to gauge their views on how well the courts in which they practice achieve the goals of access, fairness, and managerial effectiveness. A total of 334 prosecuting attorneys and 260 public defense attorneys completed the 46-item trial court process survey. Part 1 contains 40 variables pertaining to 5 dimensions of current and preferred court culture. Variables in Part 2 and Part 3 each include seven items from a jurisdictional practice scale, eight items from a procedural fairness scale, seven items from a resource scale, nine items from a management scale, nine items from a practitioner competence scale, and six items from a court access scale.