The effects of a simpler criminal procedure on criminal case outcomes: Evidence from Czech district-level data

The paper estimates the effects of a simpler and faster criminal procedure on the duration of criminal cases and the probabilities that the defendant is charged and convicted. I exploit a criminal procedure reform in the Czech Republic as a quasi-natural experiment. The reform allowed petty offenses to be prosecuted via a simplified (fast-track) procedure. The share of cases actually prosecuted via the fast-track varied substantially across districts, which provides the basis for the identification strategy. I find that the fast-track procedure reduced the average duration of the police/prosecutor phase of the criminal procedure declined by 27 days on average for the petty offenses. It also increased the probability that the suspect is charged by 6 percentage points. The fast-track procedure released resources that could potentially be spent on prosecuting serious crimes; I therefore investigate for possible spillover effects. I find only very weak evidence of such spillover effects on probability that the suspect is charged and no evidence of spillover effects on the remaining case outcomes. JEL classification: K14, K41, K42