The role of case management in misdemeanor prosecution

Abstract

Despite increasing attention to prosecutors’ role in shaping criminal justice outcomes, there is limited empirical research on what prosecutors do. While most theories of prosecutorial discretion emphasize overarching goals related to justice and safety, our paper shifts the focus toward the practical realities of the job, particularly in the lower courts. We propose a case management model of prosecutorial discretion, grounded in analyses of misdemeanor cases handled by the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office. Importantly, our dataset includes hearing-level prosecutor identifiers and decisions. By adapting established benchmarking methods, we identify credible counterfactuals and analyze how prosecutor actions influence case and defendant outcomes. We find that prosecutors vary in their case management skills, which are an important driver of conviction. Defendants fare better under prosecutors who secure fewer convictions, indicating negative consequences of conviction, but prosecutors who secure fewer convictions tend to be less effective in their day-to-day case management tasks. This highlights a fundamental tension in a prosecutor’s work: prosecutors meeting office standards demonstrate worse outcomes in terms of future criminal justice contacts. Our findings underscore the need to rethink what makes an effective prosecutor in order to achieve policy goals such as public safety, rehabilitation, and efficient resource use.