The present study investigated the impact of different legal standards on mock juror decisions concerning whether a defendant was guilty or not guilty by reason of insanity. Undergraduate students (N = 477) read a simulated case summary involving a murder case and were asked to make an insanity determination. The cases differed in terms of the condition of the defendant (rationality deficit or ...

We use the quasi-random assignment of cases to three-judge panels on US Courts Appeals assess consistency adjudication death penalty appeals. find clear evidence that apply different standards depending whether a majority panel was appointed by Democratic or Republican presidents. Unlike previous work effects in Appeals, we show these persist end process adjudication. Since early 1980s, probabi...

This article presents a model for the comparison of plea bargain proposals. The use increases possibility satisfactory development negotiation rewarded collaboration agreements recently permitted under Brazilian law. A novelty in is objective consideration society’s interest adequately punishing defendants whose guilt can be proven. To allow inclusion this element, multicriteria approach that a...

While the difficulties in appealing a guilty plea conviction are widely acknowledged, little research has investigated how appellate courts handle convictions. This study addresses this gap by examining Australian court judgments which was contested, comparing successful appeals where overturned ( n = 193) against unsuccessful remained 375). Hierarchical multiple logistic regression analysis re...

Conviction rates are high in Japan. Why? First, Japanese prosecutors are badly understaffed. Able to bring only their strongest cases, they could be presenting judges only with the most obviously guilty defendants. High conviction rates would then follow naturally. Crucially, however, this is not the full story, for Japanese judges face seriously biased incentives. A judge who acquits a defenda...