Arrest and Referral Decisions in Sexual Assault Cases: The Influence of Police Discretion on Case Attrition

Abstract

Research on sexual assault case attrition spans from the decision of victims to report the incidents and cooperate with police during investigations through the final case disposition in the courtroom. However, few studies have focused on how police discretion influences attrition at the points of arrest and case referral. The current study examines factors of adult sexual assaults reported to the police to determine which legal and extralegal factors were predictive of arrest and which variables were predictive of police decisions to refer cases to prosecutors for consideration. The results of this study showed victim cooperation and evidence significantly predicted arrest and referral, along with variables which measured the seriousness of the case and victim credibility. The findings confirmed both legally relevant and extralegal variables were important considerations during each decision-making point. Implications arising from these results are discussed.

Focal Concerns and Police Decision Making in Sexual Assault Cases: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

“…Canada and the United States share similar correlates of arrest in sexual assault investigations, and thus, Data from studies were largely collected from locations classified as urban or suburban, with only Morabito, Williams, & Pattavina (2019) analyzing data from multiple sites including rural jurisdictions. Importantly, several studies shared data sources from the Los Angeles Police Department and Sheriff’s Department (Kaiser et al, 2017; O’Neal et al, 2019; Spohn & Tellis, 2019), a large Midwestern police department (Alderden & Ullman, 2012a, 2012b), and a midwestern police department (Wentz, 2019; Wentz & Keimig, 2019).…”

“…Indeed, studies have found a significant correlation between arrest and victim alcohol consumption (O'Neal et al, 2019;Venema et al, 2019), victim credibility (Alderden & Ullman, 2012b;Kaiser et al, 2017;, intimate partner relationships (Alderden & Ullman, 2012b;Kaiser et al, 2017;, nonstranger relationships (Alderden & Ullman, 2012b;, and victim race Venema et al, 2019). Nonetheless, other studies found victim credibility measures (Kaiser et al, 2017;O'Neal et al, 2019;Spohn & Tellis, 2019), victim alcohol consumption (Scott & Beaman, 2004;Wentz & Keimig, 2019), suspect race (Alderden & Ullman, 2012a;Kaiser et al, 2017), victim race (Kaiser et al, 2017;Spohn & Tellis, 2019), intimate partner relationships (O'Neal et al, 2019;Spohn & Tellis, 2019), and nonstranger relationships (Kaiser et al, 2017;O'Neal et al, 2019;Spohn & Tellis, 2019) were not significantly correlated with arrest.…”

“…Using these sexual assault reports, researchers collect data by reviewing case files and coding for relevant variables linked to decision-making outcomes (e.g., victim and suspect demographics, victim-offender relationship, criminal histories, drug/substance use, evidence availability, weapon used, victim report time, victim injury, victim verbal and physical resistance, suspect use of force). Of such studies, most sampled cases occurred prior to 2010 (Alderden & Ullman, 2012a, 2012bBouffard, 2000;Kaiser et al, 2017;O'Neal et al, 2019;Scott & Beaman, 2004;Smith, 2005;Spohn & Tellis, 2019;Tasca et al, 2013), whereas fewer samples cases (see Venema et al, 2019;Wentz, 2019;Wentz & Keimig, 2019;Ylang & Holtfreter, 2019). Additionally, a large portion of studies used samples from Los Angeles (Kaiser et al, 2017;O'Neal et al, 2019;Spohn & Tellis, 2019;Ylang & Holtfreter, 2019) and Midwestern cities (Alderden & Ullman, 2012a, 2012bVenema et al, 2019;Wentz, 2019;Wentz & Keimig, 2019), while others sampled cases from Arizona (Tasca et al, 2013), Maryland (Smith, 2005), Canada (Scott & Beaman, 2004), and undisclosed urban/suburban/rural locations (Bouffard, 2000;Morabito et al, 2019b).…”

“…Of such studies, most sampled cases occurred prior to 2010 (Alderden & Ullman, 2012a, 2012bBouffard, 2000;Kaiser et al, 2017;O'Neal et al, 2019;Scott & Beaman, 2004;Smith, 2005;Spohn & Tellis, 2019;Tasca et al, 2013), whereas fewer samples cases (see Venema et al, 2019;Wentz, 2019;Wentz & Keimig, 2019;Ylang & Holtfreter, 2019). Additionally, a large portion of studies used samples from Los Angeles (Kaiser et al, 2017;O'Neal et al, 2019;Spohn & Tellis, 2019;Ylang & Holtfreter, 2019) and Midwestern cities (Alderden & Ullman, 2012a, 2012bVenema et al, 2019;Wentz, 2019;Wentz & Keimig, 2019), while others sampled cases from Arizona (Tasca et al, 2013), Maryland (Smith, 2005), Canada (Scott & Beaman, 2004), and undisclosed urban/suburban/rural locations (Bouffard, 2000;Morabito et al, 2019b). Studies also differed based on sample age, where some studies used juvenile and adult cases (Kaiser et al, 2017;O'Neal et al, 2019;Scott & Beaman, 2004;Smith, 2005;Spohn & Tellis, 2019) and others only analyzed data derived from cases involving adult victims (Alderden & Ullman, 2012a, 2012bWentz, 2019).…”

“…Of these studies, 12 were peer-reviewed academic journals, one was a dissertation (Smith, 2005), and one was a final report from a National Institute of Justice funded study (Morabito, Williams, & Pattavina, 2019b). One study was completed in Canada (Scott & Beaman, 2004) (Alderden & Ullman, 2012a, 2012b, and a midwestern police department (Wentz, 2019;Wentz & Keimig, 2019).…”