If you, like me, find data & graphs to be a soothing balm in troubled times, then I have a present for you. Sandy Mayson and I have a new paper that provides more data on misdemeanor case processing than a reasonable person could absorb in a week - even a quarantined week! 1/

This paper just came out in the Boston College Law Review and is a weird mix of BJS publication (data & graphs, data & graphs), a monogram on misdemeanor law, and a philosophical treatise on the nature of a misdemeanor. A few tidbits: 2/

https://lawdigitalcommons.bc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3851&context=bclr

We find huge racial disparities in every jurisdication and virtually every offense category. 3/

We find that monetary bail is a common condition of release in every jurisdiction we examine. 4/

We've got data on fines & fees, on conviction rates, on incarceration, on probation, on time to disposition, on offense categories, on traffic offenses... you want it, we've got it! (Probably) 5/

So why did we spend an inordinate amount of time wrangling data and conducting interviews on misdemeanor law in 8 different jurisdictions, you ask? 6/

Because nobody had done it before, really. The amount that is known about misdemeanors in the US is close to squat (although that's starting to change.) We wanted to fill a gap. 7/

Because misdemeanors ARE THE BULK OF THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM. In terms of people impacted, cases filed, resources spent, etc., misdemeanors are at the center of criminal justice. 8/

And because expansion of data means that a misdemeanor arrest or conviction can track you for the rest of your life, causing problems with employment, housing, education, access to public benefits, deportation, etc. 9/

And because the misdemeanor system, for many reasons, lies particularly close to the criminal justice functions that are most concerning: social/racial control and regulation of the poor/powerless. 10/

Quick shout out to some brilliant scholars whose misdemeanor scholarship we have relied heavily on... @ANatapoff @ireneojoe @jain_eisha @wrightrf ... and many others who are not on twitter or who I have inadvertently forgot

@BCLawReview @georgemasonlaw