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MEDIA ADVISORY FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Alice Chasan |
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Vera Publishes Review of Research on the Relationship NEW YORK, NY―A new publication from the Prosecution and Racial Justice Program (PRJ) of the Vera Institute of Justice offers the first widely accessible analysis of the literature on the relationship of race and ethnicity to prosecutorial decision making. Do Race and Ethnicity Matter in Prosecution?—a literature review analyzing 34 empirical studies on the relationship of race and ethnicity to prosecutorial decision making published between 1990 and 2011 in peer-reviewed journals—presents research that previously has been accessible primarily to scholars. The PRJ review is intended to encourage additional research on this critical subject. “No other actor in the criminal justice system drives case outcomes as profoundly as the prosecutor,” PRJ director Whitney Tymas writes in her introductory note. “Nevertheless, empirical research analyzing racial impacts of prosecutors’ routine choices on the thousands of defendants and victims with whom they interact daily has been scarce.” Among the review’s key findings:
Vera’s Prosecution and Racial Justice Program works in partnership with prosecutors to identify aspects of their decision making that result in unwarranted racial and ethnic disparities and to devise remedies that promote greater fairness and accountability. It focuses on improving prosecutorial practice and strengthening relationships between prosecutors and the communities they are sworn to serve. ### |
