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Explaining Sentence Severity in Large Urban Counties: A Multilevel Analysis of Contextual and Case-Level Factors

Robert R. Weidner

University of Minnesota Duluth, rweidner{at}umn.edu

Richard Frase

University of Minnesota Law School

Iain Pardoe

University of Oregon

This study used hierarchical logistic modeling to examine the impact of legal, extralegal, and contextual variables on the decision to sentence felons to prison in a sample of large urban counties in 1996. None of the four contextual (county-level) variables—the level of crime, unemployment rate, racial composition, and region—increased the likelihood of a prison sentence, but 10 case-level factors, both legal and extralegal, and several macro-micro interaction terms were influential. These results demonstrate the importance of considering smaller geographic units (i.e., counties instead of states) and controlling for case-level factors in research on interjurisdictional differences in prison use.

Key Words: contextual factors • county sentencing variations • hierarchical modeling • prison sentences

The Prison Journal, Vol. 84, No. 2, 184-207 (2004)
DOI: 10.1177/0032885504265077
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