This is an academic research project that aims to uncover and document why misdemeanor defendants proceed without counsel. To understand the phenomena of misdemeanor defendants proceeding without counsel, researchers will observe the four county criminal courts in Orange County, Florida.
July-December 2022: Court observations are now completed in both Orange and Osceola Counties. Data has been gathered and coded from both sites as well and is being prepared for statistical analysis. In addition, qualitative interviews with serval individuals enrolled in the project at intervals of 3 to 12 months after their court appearance were conducted. Relevant data from court hearings as well as interviews have been transcribed and reviewed to begin analysis. A literature review was also conducted.
January - June 2023:
Between January 1, 2023, and June 30, 2023, we completed observation, administrative, and interview data collection, transcribed and edited the interviews, and uploaded the observation field notes and transcripts to ATLAS.ti (version 22) for analysis. The administrative data was cleaned, updated, and submitted to the statistician, who completed preliminary analysis (using SPSS) and provided univariate and bivariate findings. First- and second-cycle coding was completed on the interview data. The observation field note data was analyzed, and a draft report of the findings was completed. A paper detailing the methodology employed for the project was written and presented at a virtual conference (IDRA). Finally, an early draft of the preliminary findings from the analyzed interviews has been started.
July-Dec. 2023: Part 1 of the report's methodology has been completed.
Jan - June 2024: : Open and on going (formerly referred to as Florida Misdemeanor Research Project Osceola and Orange Counties)
Work continues on the analysis of the data derived from the research regarding why individuals waive their right to counsel and the short and longer term impacts of those decisions. Over the past 6 months 2 reports have been submitted to BJA for approval. One has been approved and the other is awaiting review. The research continues to be a rich source of important information on practices in misdemeanor courts that can help inform future reforms and research.
The approved report is: “Offstage & Off-Script: Performing Bureaucratic Due Process and Waiving the Right to Counsel in Misdemeanor Court.” The report awaiting review and approval is: “Misdemeanor Defendants, Counsel Selection, and the Consequences of Delayed Representation.” The reports will be formatted and prepared for release later this fall.
July-Dec. 2024: To date, BJA has approved: Misdemeanor Defendant Counsel Selection; Off Stage and Off Script; and Complex Decision Making. Two additional reports are in draft stages, with submissions expected this spring. NACDL is currently developing the landing page for the reports and will host a series of webinars to promote them in the coming months. Dr. Smith presented on some of this research at the American Society of Criminology Conference in Nov 2024.
Please check the box next to the following questions if the answer is 'yes'.
Please enter the applicable Event Date if there is an Event associated with this TTA.
When entering an Event Date, the Time is also required.
If the TTA is targeted to a particular audience or location, please complete the questions below.
Milestones are an element, activity, work product, or key task associated with completing the TTA (e.g. kick-off meeting, collect data from stake holders, deliver initial data analysis).
Please complete the fields below, if applicable, to create a milestone for this TTA.
Please respond to the Performance Metrics below. The Performance Metrics questions are based on the TTA Type indicated in the General Information section of the TTA.
Please submit a signed letter of support from your agency’s executive or other senior staff member. The letter can be emailed to or uploaded with this request. The letter should be submitted on official letterhead and include the following information:
- General information regarding the request for TTA services, i.e., the who, what, where, when, and why.
- The organizational and/or community needs specific to the request for TTA services.
- The benefits or anticipated outcomes from the receipt of TTA services.
By submitting this application to BJA NTTAC, I understand that upon approval of this application for TTA, the requestor agrees to keep BJA NTTAC informed of any circumstances that may impact the delivery of the TTA, including changes in the date of the event, event cancellation, or difficulties communicating with the assigned TTA provider.
Please call [site:phone] if you need further assistance completing this application.