Implicit Biases and Discretionary Prosecutorial Decision Making

隐性偏见和酌情检察决策

• 批准号: 1748371
• 负责人: Jennifer Cox
• 金额: $ 28.5万
• 依托单位: University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2018
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2018-08-01 至 2020-07-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1748371&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Implicit; Biases; Discretionary; Prosecutorial; Decision

Title: Implicit Biases and Discretionary Prosecutorial Decision Making AbstractIn the United States, prosecutorial discretion provides criminal prosecutors with the ability to decide whether to pursue or dismiss initial criminal charges, and whether to negotiate a plea bargain. However, not much is known about the factors that may motivate prosecutors when they make these significant legal decisions, including whether any biases may influence their decisions. Understanding this decision-making process is particularly important when the crime involves intimate partner violence (IPV). This project will study and compare potential implicit biases in prosecutorial decisions in cases of IPV.This project will employ an experimental approach with prosecutors recruited to participate. Measures will be taken to assess any explicit and implicit biases. In the experiments the prosecutors will then be provided with materials from the initial stages of an IPV criminal investigation, including the arrest report and witness statements. The gender and sexual orientation of the individuals involved in the alleged offense will be manipulated and varied. Prosecutors will then determine how they would proceed in the case, including whether to charge a felony or misdemeanor, and whether to offer a plea bargain. This multidisciplinary project engages theoretically in the psychology and criminal justice literatures. The research will provide insight into various influences on prosecutors when rendering decisions in IPV cases. As well, by offering a more comprehensive understanding of prosecutorial discretion, it has the potential to guide reform and improve practice.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

标题：隐性偏见和酌情检察决策摘要在美国，检察裁量权使刑事检察官有权决定是否提起或驳回最初的刑事指控，以及是否进行辩诉交易谈判。然而，人们对检察官在做出这些重大法律决定时可能动机的因素知之甚少，包括是否有任何偏见可能影响他们的决定。当犯罪涉及亲密伴侣暴力 (IPV) 时，了解这一决策过程尤为重要。该项目将研究和比较 IPV 案件中检察官决策中潜在的隐性偏见。该项目将采用实验方法，招募参与其中的检察官。将采取措施评估任何显性和隐性偏见。在实验中，检察官将获得 IPV 刑事调查初始阶段的材料，包括逮捕报告和证人证词。涉嫌犯罪的个人的性别和性取向将被操纵和改变。然后，检察官将决定如何处理此案，包括是否指控重罪或轻罪，以及是否提出认罪交易。这个多学科项目在理论上涉及心理学和刑事司法文献。该研究将深入了解检察官在 IPV 案件中做出决定时受到的各种影响。此外，通过提供对检察自由裁量权更全面的理解，它有可能指导改革和改进实践。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。