Essays in

This thesis, which consists of three essays, uses empirical methods to study questions in criminal procedure and employment antidiscrimination law. The first chapter measures the consequences for offenders of expanding constitutional criminal jury trial rights. I study the Supreme Court's landmark decision in Apprendi v. New Jersey (2000), which extended beyond-a-reasonable-doubt jury factfinding (and all the costs and complications it entails) to particular facts previously decided by judges using a preponderance-of-the-evidence standard. The limited holding of Apprendi and the calculations required by the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines allow me to compare changes in the sentence lengths of groups of offenders who were differentially affected by the decision. I find that this expansion of jury trial rights benefited criminal offenders, reducing the average sentence for those most affected by more than 5 percent. The second chapter studies the prosecutorial charging response to the Supreme Court's Apprendi decision. Using federal arrest, charging, and sentencing data to evaluate prosecutorial behavior, I find evidence that prosecutors reacted to the higher costs of factfinding by reducing the number of counts filed against affected defendants by as much as 10 percent, presumably magnifying the sentence reduction that would have occurred had prosecutors not substituted charging resources toward unaffected defendants. The third chapter, co-authored with Christine Jolls, examines the employment consequences of the American's with Disabilities Act's (ADA) two major features-the discrimination prohibition and the "reasonable accommodations" requirement. Several studies have suggested that the passage of the ADA might have reduced employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities, but which particular feature or features of the ADA, if any, caused this disemployment effect are unknown. Using state-level variation in pre-ADA legal regimes to separately estimate the employment effects of the ADA's two substantive provisions, we find strong evidence that the immediate post-enactment employment effects of the ADA are attributable to the reasonable accommodations mandate rather than the firing costs associated with the antidiscrimination provision. Moreover, the pattern of effects across states suggests, contrary to prior findings, that declining disabled employment after the immediate post-ADA period may reflect factors other than the ADA. Thesis Supervisor: David H. Autor Title: Associate Professor of Economics Thesis Supervisor: Michael B. Greenstone Title: 3M Associate Professor of Economics Acknowledgements Many people made this dissertation possible. I cannot thank my thesis supervisors David Autor and Michael Greenstone enough for their consistently helpful comments, suggestions, and support. Their enthusiasm was contagious. They made writing my dissertation a lot more fun than I could have hoped. It of course goes without saying that they taught me a great deal about economics and research, and by pushing me to ask the right questions and showing me how to search carefully for the answers, I have become a much better economist. Many others at MITJosh Angrist, Glenn Ellison, Jon Gruber, Paul Joskow, Jim Poterba, Nancy Rose, and others-were always encouraging and insightful. I thank them all. I am also grateful to my fellow students at MIT. I have learned as much from them as from anyone. Outside of MIT, I benefited academically from the advice and support of many others, especially members of the Harvard Law School community. Many were giving of their time and energy. One deserves special mention. This thesis would never have been completed without Christine Jolls. She has been an inspiration to me, and I only hope that this thesis and the career that follows are worthy of the countless hours and immeasurable effort she has put into my academic development. Thank you, Christine. Dissertation writing is not all fun and uplifting, however, and the sacrifices made to finish this dissertation were not mine alone. I dedicate this thesis to my muse and new wife, Sarah Prescott. Her love and support (and understanding!!!) over the years have been unwavering--even when the many burdens of my education became unexpectedly heavy. Sarah, you have helped me to understand and answer the really important questions in life, and for that, I will forever be (happily) in your debt. I also owe a great deal of gratitude my mom, Marlene Prescott, and my little sister, Libbie Prescott, for, well, everything. I certainly don't need a Ph.D. to understand just how fortunate I am to have (and to have had) both of you in my life.