U.S. Department of Justice Bureau of Justice Statistics Special Report Federal Offenses and Offenders Federal Criminal Cases, 1980-87 Between 1980 and 1987 the number of persons prosecuted in U.S. district courts by U.S. attorneys increased 74%. During the same period the number of persons convicted in U.S. district courts increased 49%, and the number sentenced to prison grew by 71%. Persons charged with drug offenses accounted for much of this increase: Prosecutions for drugs were up 153%; convictions, 161%; and sentences to prison, 177%. By 1987 drug offenses constituted 33% of all prosecutions by U.S. attorneys, 30% of all persons convicted in U.S. district courts, and 43% of all those sentenced to prison by Federal judges. Other findings from analysis of data from • The number of suspects investigated by U.S. attorneys increased 32% between 1980 and 1987. During the entire period U.S. attorneys concluded investigations on 627,000 persons in criminal matters. The number of suspects investigated for drug offenses increased 138% between 1980 and 1987, and the number investigated for fraudulent offenses increased 49%. The number of persons prosecuted by U.S. attorneys in U.S. district courts grew from 31,218 in 1980 to 54,392 in 1987, an increase of 74%. • About 63% of defendants convicted in U.S. district courts received a prison sentence In 1987, compared to 46% In 1980. ⚫ Between 1980 and 1987, the average prison sentence handed down in U.S. district courts increased by 11 months. The increase occurred across a broad range of offenses. Some of the offenses with a greater than average increase were drug trafficking (an increase of 21 months) and weapons offenses (16 months). Suspects and prosecutions in criminal matters Investigated by U.S. attorneys The number of suspects Investigated by U.S. attorneys increased 32% between 1980 and 1987, an average annual Increase of 4.0% (table 1). Over 91,000 suspects were investigated by U.S. attorneys in 1987. The greatest increases in the number of suspects investigated occurred for drug offenses (138%) and fraudulent offenses (49%). The number of suspects investigated for regulatory offenses increased 20% between 1980 and 1987, and the number Investigated for violent offenses grew by nearly 16%. The number of suspects prosecuted by U.S. attorneys rose from 31,218 in 1980 to 54,392 in 1987. The overall increase was 74%, and the average annual rate of Increase for the 7 years was 8.3%. As with suspects Investigated by U.S. attorneys, the greatest Increases in prosecutions by U.S. attorneys occurred for drugs and fraud. The number of suspects prosecuted for drug offenses Increased from 7,003 in 1980 to 17,729 in 1987 an increase of 153%. The number of suspects prosecuted for fraudulent offenses more than doubled during the same period-from 6,250 to 13,415. Although the number of suspects whom U.S. attorneys declined to prosecute rose 16% between 1980 and 1987, the proportion of suspects prosecuted increased from 45% in 1980 to 60% in 1987 (table 2). Fraudulent offenses include embezzlement, fraud, forgery, and counterfeiting. Tax fraud is counted as a public-order offense. Every major offense category contributed to the overall increase. In 1987 almost 70% of the suspects In violent crime cases (mostly robberies) Investigated by U.S. attorneys were prosecuted In Federal court-up from 62% in 1980. A similar Increase occurred in the percentage of sus. pects in drug cases being prosecuted from 73% in 1980 to 78% in 1987. A sharp increase occurred in prosecutions of fraudulent offenses. In 1980, 38% of suspects Investigated for fraudulent offenses had charges filed against them; by 1987 the percentage prosecuted had risen to 54%. Of all persons prosecuted, the percentage who were prosecuted for some type of fraudulent offense Increased from 21% in 1980 to 25% in 1987; the percentage for persons charged with drug offenses, from 2,382 3,107 30.4 8,321 15,989 92.2 6,250 13,415 114.6 2,071 2,574 24.3 7,003 17,729 153.2 12,696 16,673 31.3 1,936 2,867 48.1 10,760 13,806 28.3 1,126 1,088 -3.4 10,428 10,963 5.1 8,855 9,760 10.2 1,573 1,203 -23.5 1,827 3,752 105.4 8,539 0,768 14.4 2,879 4,207 46.1 5,660 5,561 -1.7 mined; the 1987 total includes 1,611 suspects with unknown offenses. Other totals, which are subtotals for the suspect population, may include part of the unknowns. For the number referred to magistrates, see the discussion in the box on page 6. For the entire 1980-87 period, U.S. district courts convicted 301,757 defendants (table 6). Nearly 1 in 5 convictions during this time were for drug trafficking. Robbery was the only violent crime to rank among the 10 most numerous convictions for the 8 years together. Between 1980 and 1987 convictions for drug possession and weapons offenses replaced robbery and forgery among the 10 most numerous offenses. Offenders sentenced to prison The number of convicted offenders sentenced to Federal prison increased 71% from 1980 to 1987 (table 7). This Increase during the period reflected both a larger number of persons convicted and increased severity in sentencing. In 1980 U.S. district courts sentenced 46% of convicted defendants to prison; In 1987, 53%. The number of drug offenders sentenced to prison increased from 3,675 in 1980 to 10,196 In 1987, a gain of 177%. By contrast, the number of offenders sentenced to prison for other than drug crimes increased from 10,091 in 1980 to 13,383 in 1987, a growth of 33%. The larger number of drug defendants sentenced to prison accounted for two-thirds of the total Increase In persons sentenced to Federal prison, the remaining third being divided mainly among defendants convicted of fraudulent or public-order offenses. Table 6. Ten most numerous offenses of defendants convicted In U.S. district courts, 1980-87 Drug offenses Possession Trafficking Publlo-order offenses ་ Number of defendants convicted Total 1980-87 Other this committee we have gotten it through, we just have not been able to go through the House. I am more optimistic now. I think Chairman Brooks shares a view similar to yours and mine and I look forward. I hope you will be able to hold fast to your additional comment or your initial comment the last time we met, which was that, paraphrasing, I am not asking for more, but I can always use more if it comes my way. It is like that old joke, I am from the Federal Government, I am here to help you. Well, we are going to see if we can help you, and we would like very much to have the technical advice so that, when we help you, we really do help you, if that is the will of the Congress. Thank you, General. Attorney General THORNBURGH. Let me just add one thing, Senator, because I think we can proceed with some degree of optimism during the two cycles that I have been here dealing with this committee and with you and your colleagues. I think that there has been a great deal of cooperation in producing productive tools and additional resources for us to use, not only in the drug area but across the board in law enforcement. I said at the outset that we were grateful for that support and cooperation, and I mean it and I mean to extend it further and I look forward to working with you. The CHAIRMAN. I mean what I say when I say that we want to do it the right way. We want to do it the way that will help you most. Again, I fully understand and respect your position as a member of a larger team having to make difficult judgments for the whole Nation, not just for law enforcement, but I am optimistic that unsolicited help is on the way. [Attorney General Thornburgh submitted the following material:] |