An Examination of Jail and Prison Sentencing in Pennsylvania
Research Poster Social & Behavioral Sciences 2025 Graduate ExhibitionPresentation by Emerson Waite
Exhibition Number 178
Abstract
Jails and prisons are often discussed interchangeably, even though they are distinct types of institutions. Most existing sentencing research fails to distinguish between jail and prison in their categorical analyses of sentencing type decisions. Moreover, studies that have examined jail and prison as separate outcomes have not adequately limited their sample to draw conclusions about the impact of individual and jurisdictional characteristics. The current study uses multilevel modeling to examine county variation in the use of jail and prison sentences in Pennsylvania. It specifically focuses on a sample of offenders eligible for either jail or prison confinement but are not eligible for probation. Additionally, the study uses time series techniques to evaluate whether a law passed in 2008, which changed the criteria dictating whether an individual is sentenced to jail or prison, affected the statewide use of prison sentences. The multilevel results suggest that county strongly impacts whether an individual goes to jail or prison. As to whether the 2008 law change had any effect, the results are mixed.
Importance
Research demonstrates that the jurisdiction of conviction impacts the final sentence an individual receives. County-level analyses of sentence length and the decision to incarcerate have been conducted, but the confinement type decision, whether someone goes to county jail or state prison, has not received as much attention. Studies examining confinement type have not considered the influence of confinement eligibility in their analysis. The purpose of this study is to assess county variation in the use of jail and prison confinement for the specific sample of offenders. The study focuses on “edge” cases, those on the border of going to jail or prison, to better understand the impact that county has on the type of confinement an individual receives.