Research Summary We examined race‐group differences in the effects of how felony defendants are treated at earlier decision points in case processing on case outcomes. Multilevel analyses of 3,459 defendants nested within 123 prosecutors and 34 judges in a large, northern U.S. jurisdiction revealed significant main and interaction effects of a defendant's race on bond amounts, pretrial detention, and nonsuspended prison sentences, but no significant effects on charge reductions and prison sentence length. Evidence of greater “cumulative disadvantages” for Black defendants in general and young Black men in particular was revealed by significant indirect race effects on the odds of pretrial detention via type of attorney, prior imprisonment, and bond amounts, as well as by indirect race effects on prison sentences via pretrial detention and prior imprisonment. Policy Implications The consideration of cumulative disadvantage is important for a more complete understanding of the overincarceration of Blacks in the United States. Toward the end of reducing racial disparities in the distribution of prison sentences, courts might (a) reduce reliance on money bail, (b) consider bail amounts for indigent defendants more carefully, and (c) increase the structure of pretrial decision making to reduce the stronger effects of imprisonment history and type of attorney on the odds of pretrial detention for Black suspects.

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.

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Prior research finds that correctional officers (COs) often report high levels of stress, poor mental and physical health and are at an increased risk of suffering work-related injuries. However, little is known about the causes of such injuries. In an attempt to fill this large gap in the literature, the current study used qualitative data to explore the perceived causes of work-related injuries according to COs and their executive staff. Officers identified the reasons for injuries as either within their control or outside of their control. Injuries resulting from factors within CO’s control were perceived to be related to complacency and corruption. Injuries stemming from circumstances outside of CO’s control were perceived to be related to the nature of the job, the mental health of inmates, minor events escalating, and what are known as inmate “check-ins.” In consideration of these findings, policy implications and directions for future research are also reviewed.