Unpacking Pretrial Detention: An Examination of Patterns and Predictors of Readmissions

• Author: Olive Lu,Preeti Chauhan,Meredith Patten,Jaeok Kim,Sandra Susan Smith
• Published date: 01 July 2018
• Date: 01 July 2018
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1177/0887403418760372
• Subject Matter: Articles

https://doi.org/10.1177/0887403418760372

Criminal Justice Policy Review

2018, Vol. 29(6-7) 663 –687

© The Author(s) 2018

Reprints and permissions:

sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav

DOI: 10.1177/0887403418760372

journals.sagepub.com/home/cjp

Article

Unpacking Pretrial

Detention: An Examination

of Patterns and Predictors of

Readmissions

Jaeok Kim1, Preeti Chauhan1, Olive Lu1,

Meredith Patten1, and Sandra Susan Smith2

Abstract

Pretrial detention makes up the majority of jail admissions, but little is known

about this high-volume population. The current study fills this gap by examining

the pretrial detention population in New York City and assesses their pretrial

readmissions over a 10-year follow-up period. While the number of individuals

detained pretrial has consistently decreased since 1995, the prevalence and the

frequency of pretrial readmissions remain high: About 60% of the sample was

readmitted at least once within 10 years and they were readmitted on average

3 times. A negative binomial model predicting readmission counts for felony and

misdemeanor admissions found that males, non-Hispanic Blacks, and younger

individuals were more frequently readmitted pretrial. Self-reported drug use and

prior criminal records were associated with higher readmission counts. We also

found that charge and discharge types predicted readmission counts. Findings

suggest the importance of earlier intervention and developing targeted strategies

to reduce further readmissions.

Keywords

pretrial detention, recidivism, readmission, correctional policy, criminal justice policy

1John Jay College of Criminal Justice, New York, NY, USA

2University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA

Corresponding Author:

Jaeok Kim, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, 524 West 59th Street, New York, NY 10019, USA.

Email: jakim@jjay.cuny.edu

760372CJPXXX10.1177/0887403418760372Criminal Justice Policy ReviewKim et al.

research-article2018

664 Criminal Justice Policy Review 29(6-7)

Introduction

Recent estimates suggest that the number of individuals admitted to jails increased

from 9.7 million in 1993 to 13.6 million in 2008 (Minton & Zeng, 2016; Perkins,

Stephan, & Beck, 1995). In 2015, there were 10.9 million individuals admitted to local

jails in the United States and the average daily jail population was over 720,000

(Minton & Zeng, 2016). Jail is a unique criminal justice contact point because it holds

individuals at different stages of case processing, including those waiting for trial

(unconvicted), serving sentences shorter than one year, or waiting to be transferred to

prison. Individuals detained pretrial comprise the largest proportion of jail admissions

as well as the jail population. From 2005 to 2013, the number of unconvicted (i.e.,

pretrial) defendants held in local jails on any given day was over 450,000, and

accounted for over 60% of the daily jail population (Minton & Golinelli, 2014). In

New York City, which has one of the biggest jail systems in the country, approximately

three quarters of admissions to the Department of Correction (DOC) in 2015 were for

pretrial detention (Chauhan et al., 2016).

The sheer volume of pretrial detention has garnered attention from both policymak-

ers and advocacy groups. Holding a person in jail for pretrial is costly for both the

jurisdiction and the individual. It is estimated that local governments spend approxi-

mately 9 billion dollars for detaining individuals pretrial (Department of Justice,

2011). In New York City, the estimated annual cost per inmate was over $80,000 in

2012 and increased by 51% in 2016 (New York City Comptroller’s Office, 2016).

Reducing the number of individuals detained pretrial, which makes up the majority of

the jail population, may be one way to reduce the financial burden of the criminal

justice system for local governments (Ortiz, 2015).

The cost of pretrial detention for an individual defendant goes beyond finances.

Existing studies on the negative consequences of detention for individual defendants

found that pretrial detention increased the probability of conviction as well as the

probability of receiving a jail sentence (Heaton, Mayson, & Stevenson, 2017;

Lowenkamp, VanNostrand, & Holsinger, 2013). A study on pretrial detention for mis-

demeanor cases in Harris County, Texas, found that detained individuals were more

likely to plead guilty and to receive jail sentences than similarly situated individuals

who were released (Heaton et al., 2017). The study also found higher recidivism rates

among those detained pretrial, suggesting that there is a criminogenic effect of pretrial

detention. Similarly, Lowenkamp and colleagues (2013) found that individuals

detained pretrial compared with those released had 1.3 times higher likelihood of rear-

rest at a 2-year follow-up in a Kentucky jail.

There are also indirect costs for individuals detained pretrial. Collateral consequences

of pretrial detention include negative impacts on health, child care, employment, and

housing (Csete, 2010; Human Rights Watch, 2010; Open Society Foundations, 2011a,

2011b). Furthermore, as the length of pretrial detention increases, there is an increased

risk of job loss and economic instability, which may, in turn, increase the risk of accumu-

lating debt, not paying rent, and losing child custody (Ortiz, 2015). These are significant

consequences, especially given that these individuals are presumed innocent until trial.