Social Context and Early Disposition Departures: An Examination of Disparity in Immigration Sentencing Across U.S. District Courts

Abstract

In the 1990s, the United States Attorneys’ Offices implemented programs to make sentencing for immigration offenses more efficient by designating a number of “Fast-Track” districts. In 2012, these programs were expanded to all federal districts. Using data from multiple sources including federal sentencing data from 2015 to 2016 and community-level variables from the American Community Survey, this study examines how individual and district-level characteristics affect receipt and magnitude of early disposition departures. Findings suggest Hispanic population, Republican Control, and original fast-track district predict early disposition departure receipt and sentence length. District-level characteristics can influence when and how these departures are used.