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1 Matthew R. Durose & Patrick A. Langan, Felony Sentences in State Courts, 2000 1 (2003)

handle is hein.agopinions/fsensc0001 and id is 1 raw text is: U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs June 2003, NCJ 198821 Felony Sentences in State Courts, 2000 By Matthew R. Durose and Patrick A. Langan, Ph.D. BJS Statisticians In 2000 State courts convicted almost 925,000 adults of a felony. Forty percent of convicted felons were sentenced to a State prison, and 28% were sentenced to a local jail (usually for a year or less). The remaining 32% were sentenced to probation. These findings come from a survey conducted every 2 years and is the Nation's sole source of statistical information on the sentences felons receive in State courts nationwide. National Judicial Reporting Program The National Judicial Reporting Program (NJ RP) compiles detailed information on the sentences and characteristics of convicted felons. Previous national surveys of felony sentencing in State courts have been conducted every two years since 1986.1 See Felony Sentences in State Courts, 1986, NCJ 115210, February 1989; Felony Sentences in State Courts, 1988, NCJ 126923, December 1990; Felony Sentences in State Courts, 1,990, NCJ 140186, March 1993; Felony Sentences in State Courts, 1992, NCJ 151167, January 1995; Felony Sentences in State Courts, 1994, NCJ 163391, Januarv 1997; Felony Sentences in State Courts, 1996, NCJ 173939, May 1999; Felony Sentences in State Courts, 1998, NCJ 190103, October 2001. In 2000 State courts convicted an estimated 924,700 adults of a felony. Federal courts convicted 59,123, bringing the combined U.S. total to 983,823. State courts accounted for 94% of the national total. * Drug offenders were 34.6% of felons convicted in State courts in 2000. Property offenders made up 28.3%; violent offenders, 18.7%; and those convicted of weapon offenses and other nonviolent crimes made up the rest (18.4%). State courts sentenced 40% of convicted felons to a State prison, 28% to a local jail, and 32% to straight probation with no jail or prison time to serve. The average State court sentence to local jail was 6 months. The average probation sentence was 3 years and 2 months. A fine was imposed on 25% of convicted felons, restitution on 14%, community service on 5%, and treat- ment was ordered for 7%. The average sentence length to State prison has decreased since 1992 (61/2 years versus 4/2 years), but felons sentenced in 2000 were likely to serve more of that sentence before release (38% versus 55%). Guilty pleas accounted for 95% of felony convictions in State courts in 2000. Trial convictions accounted for the remaining 5%. * Nationally, of the felons convicted in State courts in 2000, 54% were white, 44% were black, and 2% were other races. The median age of felons convicted in State courts in 2000 was 30. Females accounted for an increasing portion of felons convicted in State courts. In 1992, females were 13% of convicted felons; in 2000, 17%. The median time from arrest to State court sentencing in 2000 was about 5 months. An estimated 86% of convicted felons were sentenced within 1 year of arrest. 0

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