Mediation in criminal misdemeanor cases

Abstract

Objective: to fill a research gap by examining the shortand long-term impact of community mediation in criminal misdemeanor cases within the context of potentially ongoing relationships.Methods: dialectical approach to cognition of social phenomena, using the general scientific and specific scientific methods of cognition, based on it, including telephone polling and studying cases data.Results: Diversion of criminal misdemeanors to mediation by district attorneys has been practiced since the 1970s, but research on its impact on critical outcomes like recidivism is scant and outdated. This quasi-experimental study compares 78 mediated cases from a county that diverts cases to mediation with 128 cases in a similar neighboring county that does not, using phone surveys and case review to ask whether recidivism in mediated cases differs from cases prosecuted or treated as usual over the subsequent year. Controlling for case factors and attitudes toward conflict, a case that is not mediated was five times more likely to result in judicial action, five times more likely to result in jury trial demand, and ten times more likely to result in supervised probation or jail time, and mediated cases were almost five times less likely to return to criminal court in the subsequent year than those that were not mediated.Scientific novelty: Preliminary analysis of case characteristics revealed that cases in the mediation and comparison group had the following characteristics: defendants had no prior felony convictions, did not have multiple misdemeanor charges, and had no outstanding warrants. Charges involving any type of weapon, drugs, or violence more serious than second degree assault had been excluded from the comparison group since they are usually excluded from diversion to mediation.Practical significance: the main provisions and conclusions of the article can be used in scientific, pedagogical and law enforcement activities when considering the issues related to mediation in criminal misdemeanor cases.The article was first published in English language by Criminology, Criminal Justice, Law & Society and The Western Society of Criminology Hosting by Scholastica. For more information please contact: CCJLS@WesternCriminology.org.For original publication: Charkoudian, L., Walter, J., Harmon-Darrow, C., Bernstein, J. (2021). Mediation in Criminal MisdemeanorCases. Criminology, Criminal Justice, Law & Society, 22 (3), 14–29.Publication URL: https://ccjls.scholasticahq.com/article/30144-mediation-in-criminal-misdemeanor-cases