Ecological Contributors to Disparities in Bond Amounts and Pretrial Detention

Abstract

Pretrial dispositions have been receiving greater attention in the literature on extralegal disparities in criminal case processing. We examined the relevance of areas in which crimes are committed for court decisions regarding bond amounts and whether suspects are ultimately detained prior to trial. A random sample of 2,677 persons charged with felony crimes committed in 820 blocks of a major urban U.S. jurisdiction was examined, with separate analyses of property, violent, and drug offenses. Defendants were more likely to be held in jail prior to trial when crimes were committed in more disadvantaged neighborhoods (higher percentages of female-headed households, vacant residences, renters, and African Americans). However, the odds of pretrial detention were also higher for defendants accused of crimes in less disadvantaged neighborhoods relative to their own. Evidence favors neighborhood composition as an important contributor to disparities in pretrial detention beyond individual factors such as a defendant’s race.