Reducing Failure to Appear in Court: A Procedural Justice Approach (Nebraska)
Problems addressed
Recidivism
Effectiveness

Promising

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Promising

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Life periods served
Adults (18 to 59 years)
Where the program was applied
Outpatient - Justice and Sentence Enforcement Services
Country of application
United States
Description

This is a program designed to reduce the rates of non-appearance in court of those accused of minor offenses. The aim is to inform users of court appearance dates by mailing them letters.
The warning/reminder message issued in the letter includes passages about the neutrality and consistency of court rulings, as well as the fair treatment of all defendants and an opportunity for defendants to explain their situation from their own perspective.

Impact evaluations

An impact evaluation showed that offenders who received the program’s intervention had a no-show rate of 9.7%, lower than the 12.6% recorded for participants in the control group. This difference was statistically significant [1]. The study had an experimental design, including 7,865 defendants from 14 Nebraska counties [1].

Bibliographic reference

[1] Bornstein, B. H., Tomkins, A. J., & Neeley, E. M. (2011). Reducing courts’ failure to appear rate: A procedural justice approach. US Department of Justice, 1-26. https://dx.doi.org/10.3886/ICPSR28861

Information source